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THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 


THE  GREATER  GOSPEL 


BY 

JOHN    m/bAMFORD 

AUTHOR   OF    "my   CROSS    AND   THINE " 
"CHRIST    IN    THE    CITY  "    ETC 


/ 


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NEW   YORK:    EATON    Sz   MAINS 
CINCINNATI:  CURTS  &  JENNINGS 

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CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I 

PACE 

Creed 7 


CHAPTER  II 
Cross 44 

CHAPTER  III 
Crown 7^ 

CHAPTER   IV 


Conquest "2 


Chapter  I 

CREED 
A  I  ^HE  city  church  was  filled 
with  a  great  congregation 
of  all  classes.  A  hush  of  rever- 
ent expectation  rested  upon  the 
assembly.  The  organist  sat  with 
his  feet  on  the  pedals  and  his 
fingers  on  the  keys.  Softly  re- 
sponsive to  his  touch  the  instru- 
ment uttered  its  voice,  and   the 


8      THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

feeling  and  passion  of  the  player 
entered  into  it.  The  music  stole 
upon  the  senses  with  such  ex- 
quisite delicacy  that  the  ear  was 
constrained  to  listen.  It  might 
hav^e  been  the  lone  voice  of  the 
Virgin  Mother,  as  she  laid  the 
child  Jesus  to  sleep  in  her 
bosom, — 

"My  soul  doth  magnify  the 
Lord,  and  my  spiiit  hath  rejoiced 
in  God  my  Saviour." 

Or  it  might  have  been  the 
trembling  tones  of  good  old 
Simeon, — 

*'Now  lettest  Thou  Thy  ser- 
vant depart,  O   Lord,  according 


CREED  9 

to  Thy  word,  in  peace  ;  for  mine 
eyes  have  seen  Thy  salvation." 

Or  it  might  have  been  the 
hymn  which  Christ  and  His  dis- 
ciples sang  in  the  sacramental 
chamber  before  they  w^ent  unto 
the  Mount  of  Olives. 

So  gently  and  tenderly  the 
music  came,  as  if  it  fain  would 
have  lost  itself  in  the  heart- 
silence  of  the  worshippers.  But 
silent  hearts  began  to  speak; 
eyes  which  had  felt  the  dew  ot 
tears  caught  a  beam  of  hope; 
harps  which  had  been  hanging 
upon  the  willows  were  taken 
down ;  the  music  rippled  on  from 


lo    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

spirit  to  spirit,  and  waxed  louder 
and  louder,  until  it  swelled  into 
a  march  of  triumph  and  a  peal 
of  victory.  It  might  have  been 
the  morning  stars  "singing" 
together,  and  all  the  "sons  of 
God"  shouting  "for  joy";  or  it 
might  have  been  "a  multitude 
of  the  heavenly  host  praising 
God  "  and  rehearsing  the  advent 
song :  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  high- 
est, and  on  earth  peace  among 
men." 

As  the  hour  struck,  the  minister 
entered  the  pulpit  and  began  the 
service.  There  stood  the  one  man 
in  front  of    the    assembly.     His 


CREED  II 

face  was  graven  after  the  finest 
model  of  intelligence.  Thought 
reigned  upon  his  brow.  Battle 
and  victory  were  in  his  counten- 
ance. Years  had  imprinted  upon 
his  person  the  seal  of  seniority. 
He  had  reached  the  point  in  life 
at  which  the  light  of  the  unseen 
becomes  distinctly  visible — where 
the  press  of  memories  behind 
gives  intensity  to  the  sense  of 
narrowing  room  for  labour. 
There  he  stood,  a  man  with  a 
long  retrospect  of  work  done, 
and  with  eager  glances  into  the 
possibilities  yet  to  be  accom- 
plished— a   sower  with  his  hand 


12    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

full  of  seed — a  reaper  with  the 
sickle  in  his  grip — a  harvester 
'*  bringing  his  sheaves  with  him." 
There  he  stood — a  minister  of 
God  —  with  the  glow  of  the 
Divine  presence  upon  his  face, 
and  the  urgency  of  the  Divine 
message  upon  his  lips;  full  of 
feeling,  and  sympathy,  and 
strength — ready  to  speak  what 
God  had  spoken  to  him. 

The  ritual  of  the  service  pro- 
ceeded in  customary  form  until 
the  sermon  was  due.  Ladies 
and  gentlemen  opened  their  gilt- 
edged  Bibles  to  mark  the  minis- 
ter's   text.     But    there    came    a 


CREED  13 

pause,  impressive  because  it  was 
unusual,  more  impressive  when  it 
was  broken  by  the  pastor's  voice 
— like  the  music,  low,  sympathe- 
tic, swelling  into  force — like  the 
drip  of  tears — like  the  breaking 
of  a  heart  which  knew  its  own 
bitterness — like  the  clarion  cry 
carrying  ''the  fiery  cross": — 

'"I  have  preached  righteous- 
ness in  the  great  congregation: 
lo,  I  have  not  refrained  my  lips. 

0  Lord,  Thou  knowest  I  have 
not  hid  Thy  righteousness  within 
my  heart;  I  have  declared  Thy 
faithfulness  and   Thy   salvation: 

1  have  not  concealed  Thy  loving- 


14    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

kindness  and  Thy  truth  from  the 
great  congregation.' 

"  I  have  seen  the  great  gospel 
variously  written  in  the  multi- 
plied beliefs  of  men,  and  I  have 
seen  a  greater  gospel,  which  I 
desire  to  study  and  to  testify — 
I  mean  the  gospel,  '  written  not 
with  ink,  but  with  the  Spirit  of 
the  living  God ;  not  in  tables  of 
stone,  but  in  fleshy  tables  of  the 
heart.'  These  tables  of  flesh  are 
manifestly  '  known  and  read  of 
all  men.'  They  supply  a  key  to 
the  mysteries  of  the  kingdom  of 
God.  They  pronounce  an  em- 
phatic   *yea,    yea,'    where    men 


CREED  15 

are  halting  between  two  opinions. 
Why  should  I  not  preach  to  you 
this  greater  gospel  ?  Why  should 
I  not  ask  you  to  join  me  in  the 
consideration  of  themes  which 
the  Holy  Ghost  has  written  by 
indelible  processes  on  the  most 
imperishable  materials  that  God 
ever  made?  Why  should  I  not 
say  to  them  that  deny  Christ:  I 
will  meet  you  with  those  that 
confess  Christ?  Why  should  I 
not  answer  men  who  dismiss  the 
Word  as  'a  cunningly  devised 
fable,'  with  the  affirmation  of 
men  who  have  demonstrated  its 
verities  ? 


1 6    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

''  There  are  gods  many  and 
lords  many;  there  are  altars 
inscribed  '  To  the  unknown  God ; ' 
but  *  the  God  that  answereth  by 
fire,  let  Him  be  God.'  There 
are  negations  deep  enough,  men 
think,  to  engulph  Christ's  gospel. 
Shall  we  see  this  bottomless  pit  of 
men's  digging  yawn  at  our  feet, 
and  not  call  upon  our  souls  and 
all  that  is  within  us  to  fill  it 
up  ?  If  I  minister  to  you  uncer- 
tainties, I  am  not  loyal  to  my 
call.  I  have  come  into  this  pul- 
pit with  the  profound  conviction 
that  you,  my  people,  are  a  part 
of    the    gospel   which  I    am  re- 


CREED  17 

sponsible  to  preach.  A  Christian 
Church  does  not  rise  to  its  duty 
if  it  allow  the  things  of  the 
Spirit  of  God  to  be  hid  in  an 
atmosphere  of  doubt.  There  is 
a  passing  shadow  between  me 
and  the  sun  of  my  soul.  I  have 
cried  for  light,  and  God  has  not 
yet  answered  me.  But  this  I 
know,  that  until  I  preach  what 
your  lives  reveal,  I  cannot  com- 
plete '  the  ministry  which  I  have 
received  of  the  Lord  Jesus  to 
testify,  the  gospel  of  the  grace 
of  God.' 

"There  are  blanks,  not  in  un- 
belief alone,  but  there  are  blanks 


1 8    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

in  my  own  experience,  which 
can  only  be  filled  from  your  ex- 
perience. The  gospel  claims  all 
its  lawful  evidences,  and  I  as  a 
minister  of  the  gospel  claim  them 
also. 

**Let  every  man  and  woman 
who  has  a  truth  to  tell,  tell  it; 
and  let  that  gospel  which  has 
been  proved  in  the  life  experience 
of  a  human  soul,  call  life  and 
immortality  to  light  in  another 
human  soul.  The  time  has  come 
when  God  expects  human  life  to 
bring  out  its  gospel — not  criti- 
cisms, revisions  or  assumptions — 
a  gospel  deeper  than  the  hand 


CREED  19 

can  write,  deeper  than  the  press 
can  print,  deeper  than  spoken 
language  can  express;  a  gospel 
in  which  life  shall  surround  it- 
self with  witnesses,  and  set  to 
its  seal  that  its  testimony  is 
true. 

"  No  book  can  be  a  com- 
plete gospel,  any  more  than  a 
book  can  be  complete ,  science. 
There  is  a  greater  science, 
which  includes  all  practical  re- 
searches and  positive  results. 
In  like  manner  there  is,  beyond 
the  gospel  written,  the  gospel 
lived — the  Divine  exposition  of 
truth,   which   God    never  ceases 


20    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

to  give  as  man  comes  face  to 
face  with  Deity.  Read  a  pas- 
sage in  the  book  merely,  and 
it  represents  so  many  words; 
read  that  same  passage  in  the 
Ufe,  and  it  possesses  deathless 
vitality.  Our  Lord  said:  'This 
is  life  eternal,  that  they  might 
know  Thee,  the  only  true  God, 
and  Jesus  Christ  whom  Thou 
hast  sent.'  In  that  communion 
of  life  there  is  a  gospel  which 
exceeds  all  other  forms  of  com- 
munication. Christ's  order  is: 
'  I  in  them,  and  Thou  in  Me, 
that  the  world  may  know.' 
*'  Let  these  truths,  in  which  we 


CREED  21 

have  found  kinship  closer  than 
bone  of  our  bone  or  flesh  of  our 
flesh — truths  through  which  our 
hearts'  blood  has  filtered,  and 
which  have  become  assimilated 
with  our  whole  being  —  take 
their  place  in  every  Bible  that 
is  blank,  until  the  letter  kindle 
into  spirit,  and  the  gospel  grow 
into  the  greater  gospel,  large 
as  the  heart  of  God,  large  as 
'  the  whole  family  which  in 
heaven  and  earth  is  named.' 

'*  In  every  judicial  inquiry, 
whether  made  by  God  or  man, 
there  are  facts  proven  which 
become   the    endowment    of    hu- 


22    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

manity,  and  which  no  genera- 
tion, and  no  epoch,  and  no 
evolution  can  impregnate  with 
decay.  There  are  things  in  life 
which  last,  and  which  never 
become  lumber  or  bad  stock. 
When  the  widest  latitude  is 
allowed  to  fashion,  it  must  be 
limited  by  the  human  form. 
When  bountiful  supplies  are  at 
the  service  of  our  cooks,  pro- 
vision must  be  subject  to  the 
law  of  appetite.  Appetite  rules 
over  the  banquets  of  kings  and 
queens  with  more  imperative 
authority  than  royalty  itself. 
However  bold  may  be  the  march 


CREED  23 

of  intellect,  it  must  keep  pace 
with  conscience.  The  principles 
which  give  safe  guidance  are 
those  which  do  not  change. 

**  Experts  in  criticism  say  that 
Divine  things  have  been  written 
in  cypher,  and  must  remam  a 
secret ;  but  it  may  be  that  these 
things  have  only  to  be  held  up 
against  the  lives  of  God's  people 
in  order  to  be  read  distinctly. 
Life  is  a  revelation  of  God.  It 
is  historically  known  that  one 
age  educates  another.  Genera- 
tions of  men  and  women,  yet  to 
be  born  and  think  and  speak 
and    act,    will     drink     at     the 


24    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

wells  we  have  digged.  They 
will  edge  their  tools  on  our 
grindstones,  and  garner  their 
harvests  from  our  seed.  They 
will  sail  their  ships  by  our 
charts,  and  steer  by  our  land- 
marks; aye,  and  they  will  live 
by  our  lives.  Their  faith  and 
their  works  will  testify  to  our 
belief  and  our  practice.  The 
signs  of  the  times  are  full  of 
the  one  name  which  unites 
'yesterday  and  to-day  and  for 
ever.' 

''But  do  not  let  us  think  that 
we  can  make  life  sweet  and 
pure  by  the  use  of  disinfectants. 


CREED  25 

We  shall  better  benefit  posterity, 
Ave  shall  better  benefit  the  age 
in  which  we  live,  by  enforcing 
the  sanitary  laws  of  heaven 
wherever  the  habits  of  earth 
are  unwholesome  and  unclean. 

''It  would  ill  become  me  to 
attempt  to  shift  the  centre  of 
authority,  or  to  invest  humanity 
with  attributes  which  belong  to 
Deity.  We  shall  never  advance 
in  the  attainment  of  truth  by 
enthroning  man  in  place  of  God, 
or  by  substituting  human  claims 
for  the  Divine. 

"The  crisis  through  which  the 
Church    is     passing    is    one    in 


26   THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

which  we  shall  do  well  to  re- 
member the  unity  and  equality 
of  truth.  That  truth  is  the 
same,  whether  it  dwell  in  the  in- 
finite nature  of  God  or  in  the 
finite  nature  of  man ;  whether 
it  be  solving  problems  in  the 
philosopher's  brain  or  read  by 
the  wayfarer  who  runs  as  he 
reads. 

'*  Whenever  Reason  grafts  its 
stock  with  fiction,  it  stultifies 
itself.  I  have  no  gauntlet  to 
fling  down  to  Reason.  I  have 
no  challenge  to  call  her  into 
the  lists,  because  I  believe  that 
Reason    is    in    the    forefront    of 


CREED  27 

every  movement  which  is  ad- 
vancing God  ward  and  Heaven- 
ward. What  I  want  to  empha- 
size is  this:  That  a  truth  in  any 
man's  life  is  a  truth  in  every 
man's  life.  In  that  fact  there 
is  invincible  force. 

*'  Just  as  a  diamond  is  as 
much  a  diamond  in  the  finder's 
hand  as  in  the  monarch's  crown, 
so  with  truth.  You  may  alter 
its  setting,  but  it  is  truth  every- 
where. Whether  it  be  held  by 
the  highest  or  the  humblest,  it 
is  of  the  same  value.  A  truth 
is  none  the  less  a  truth  be- 
cause  it    is    disputed.    The  law 


28    THE   GREATER  GOSPEL 

of  gravitation  was  as  fixed  a 
fact  in  the  economy  of  the  uni- 
verse before  it  was  acknow- 
ledged as  it  is  to-day.  The 
earth  revolved  on  its  axis  at 
the  very  moment  that  Galileo's 
objectors  threatened  him  with 
death.  Whilst  they  in  their 
ignorance  pestered  him  to  recant 
his  great  discoveries,  he  whis- 
pered, '  It  moves !  it  moves  ! ' 
And  it  did  move,  as  everybody 
now  knows,  although  Galileo 
was  set  face  to  face  with  death 
for  saying  so. 

**I    want    to    preach    to    you 
from     that     greater    gospel     in 


CREED  29 

which  truth  is  not  only  pro- 
mised, but  realized ;  in  which 
things  are  not  only  said,  but 
done;  in  which  a  man  can 
certify,  *  I  know  whom  I  have 
believed,  and  am  persuaded  that 
He  is  able  to  keep  that  which 
I  have  committed  unto  Him 
against  that  day.' 

**  Is  there  one  in  this  con- 
gregation who  has  heard  the 
voice  of  God  in  the  soul  an- 
nouncing the  pardon  of  sin  ?  " 

A  woman  immediately  re- 
sponded with  an  emphatic 
"  Yes !    I    have    been    forgiven 


much.     I  was  a  sinner,  a  wilful 


30    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

sinner,  against  God,  but  Divine 
love  subdued  my  disobedient 
spirit.  I  came  to  Christ  v^eary 
and  heavy-laden.  I  had  no- 
thing to  offer  but  a  broken 
heart,  nothing  to  show  but 
sorrow  for  my  sin,  nothing  to 
plead  but  my  trust  in  His 
mercy.  He  knew  I  was  a  sin- 
ner, and  others  knew  it.  They 
reproached  me,  and  my  own 
heart  condemned  me,  but  He 
said  to  those  about  me,  '  Her 
sins,  which  are  many,  are  for- 
given'; and  to  me  He  said,  'Thy 
sins  are  forgiven.  Thy  faith 
hath  saved  thee.     Go  in  peace.'  " 


CREED  31 

'*Art  thou  witnessing  to  us," 
interposed  the  minister,  "  what 
God  and  thine  own  conscience 
have  witnessed  to  tliee?" 

"Oh!  sir,"  she  replied,  "can 
I  witness  to  the  light  which  I 
see  with  mine  eyes,  to  the  air 
which  I  breathe  with  my  lungs, 
to  the  food  which  my  appetite 
desires,  and  not  witness  to  the 
love  which  is  even  better  than 
life?  As  I  live,  I  have  tasted 
that  the  Lord  is  gracious. 
'  O  Lord,  I  will  praise  Thee  : 
though  Thou  wast  angry  with 
me.  Thine  anger  is  turned  away, 
and  Thou  comfortedst  me.' " 


32    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

"  A  woman  shall  not  stand 
alone  as  a  confessor  of  Christ," 
said  a  young  man  who  rose 
in  the  midst  of  the  assembly. 
''I  am  a  prodigal  son.  I  left 
my  father's  house,  grieved  my 
father's  heart,  wasted  my 
father's  substance,  and  lived  a 
fast  life  in  selfish  pleasures, 
whilst  my  father  and  mother 
mourned  for  me  at  home.  But 
a  change  came  over  me.  Where 
I  had  sought  luxuries,  I  found 
husks.  Where  I  had  received 
flattery,  I  lost  esteem.  Where 
I  had  spent  all,  I  was  reduced 
to  beggary,   and    no    man  gave 


CREED  33 

unto  me.  They  that  fawned 
upon  me  when  I  was  rich,  de- 
spised me  when  I  was  poor. 
Those  on  whom  I  had  lavished 
much  shut  their  hearts  against 
me  when  I  had  nothing  to  give. 
My  boon  companions  deserted 
me.  I  had  not  a  friend  to 
speak  kindly  to  me.  Remorse 
and  shame  oppressed  me,  and 
there  was  not  a  hand  to  help 
me  or  a  voice  to  bid  me  hope. 
Every  door  was  closed.  I  knew 
not  where  to  knock,  or  to  whom 
I  could  appeal. 

'*  In    my    extremity    I    turned 

towards  the   long-suffering    love 
8 


34    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

which  I  had  dishonoured ;  and 
even  before  my  father  saw  me, 
yea,  before  my  mother  embraced 
me,  the  love  of  God  met  me,  and 
my  Saviour  blessed  me." 

*^  Dost  thou  claim  Christ's 
great  parable,"  asked  the  minis- 
ter, '*  to  be  complete  in  thine 
own  life  ? " 

''  Yea,  sir ;  your  query  is  al- 
ready answered  in  my  Father's 
house.  My  Father's  kiss  is  upon 
my  cheek.  He  has  put  the  best 
robe  upon  my  person,  even  His 
ring  on  my  hand,  and  shoes  on 
my  feet.  Hark  !  hark  !  while  I 
yet   speak   they  sing,   '  For   this 


CREED  35 

my  son  was  dead,  and  is  alive 
again ;  he  was  lost,  and  is  found.' 
The  Father  who  recognised  me 
when  I  was  a  great  way  off, 
the  Christ  who  told  my  story, 
and  my  own  penitent  heart  are 
witnesses  that  what  I  have  said 
is  true." 

"Brethren,"  cried  the  minister 
in  glad  earnestness,  "it  is  writ- 
ten in  the  Word,  and  it  is  re- 
vealed in  life,  that  '  If  we  confess 
our  sins,  God  is  faithful  and  just 
to  forgive  us  our  sins,  and  to 
cleanse  us  from  all  unrighteous- 
ness.' If  any  erring  daughter 
be  afraid  of  approaching  Christ 


36    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

let  our  sister  who  has  proved 
His  love  lead  her  into  His  pre- 
sence. If  any  undutiful  son 
doubt  the  promise  of  pardon,  let 
him  grasp  the  hand  of  that 
young  man  whose  heart  is  warm 
with  the  home  welcome,  and  let 
them  say  together,  '  I  will  arise, 
and  go  unto  my  Father.'  " 

^^  Pardon!''  retorted  a  man  of 
haggard  aspect ;  ''  what  is  the 
use  of  preaching  pardon  to  me  ? 
If  sin  be  the  transgression  of 
God's  laws,  I  have  had  no  time 
to  transgress  them.  I  have  a 
wife  and  ten  children,  and  by 
sweating  Avork  and  joint  labour 


CREED  37 

we  can  barely  earn  enough  to 
keep  our  bodies  and  souls  to- 
gether. My  only  aim  in  life  is 
to  get  bread.  I  am  using  up  my 
brains,  and  nerves,  and  sinews 
to  get  bread.  Day  in  and  day 
out  the  hue  and  cry  of  my  ima- 
gination is  bread.  That  is  the 
strain  to  which  I  give  my  life  as 
a  man,  and  when  I  have  got 
bread  I  am  unmanned,  and  feel 
readier  to  face  the  grave  than 
to  face  the  effort  to  win  another 
loaf.  They  say  Great  Britain 
has  abolished  the  slave  trade  in 
her  dominions.  I  say  she  has 
not.     I  am  a  victim  under  laws 


38    THE    GREATER    GOSPEL 

which  allow  my  labour  to  be 
taken  for  less  than  a  tenth  of 
its  value.  If  the  laws  of  my 
country  decline  to  see  justice 
done  to  me,  does  the  Church  also 
decline  it  ?  The  Church  says 
that  religion  is  love ;  the  Church 
preaches,  '  Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbour  as  thyself.'  Sermons 
are  full  of  '  ftiith,  hope,  charity,' 
and  when  preachers  have  mea- 
sured the  three  Graces,  they  say, 
'  The  greatest  of  these  is  charity.' 
Ah!  ah!"  and  the  man's  mock- 
ing laughter  rang  through  the 
church. 

'*  I    see    a    distressed    mother, 


CREED  39 

who,  when  her  children  ask  for 
bread,  has  to  give  them  a  stone. 
I  see  a  family  of  boys  and  girls 
who,  for  want  of  the  necessaries 
of  life,  are  growing  old  before 
they  are  out  of  their  teens.  I 
see  avarice  and  guile  exacting 
their  '  pound  of  flesh,'  and  exact- 
ing it  from  the  vital  part  which 
means  death;  not  death  to  the 
body  merely,-  that  would  be 
welcome,  —  but  death  to  liberty 
and  hope ;  death  under  hard, 
unfeeling,  steel-set  eyes,  which 
are  greedy  of  gain.  Slow  death 
— would  God  it  were  quicker ! 
''  Yet   withal,   the   Church  goes 


40    THE   GRExVFER   GOSPEL 

on  preacJiiug  that  love  is  the 
greatest!  Look  at  me:  am  I  an 
example  of  your  great  love? 
You  offer  me  the  Bread  of  Life. 
It's  more  than  I  ask.  Give  me 
the  bread  to  save  me  from  the 
premature  hell  of  despair.  What 
is  your  creed  worth  to  me  when 
it  denies  me  a  crust? 

*'  No,  sir,  don't  set  me  the  task 
of  seeking  pardon.  Somebody 
somewhere  needs  to  be  pardoned 
by  me,  and  I  appeal  to  Heaven 
in  my  fear  that  I  have  not  grace 
to  grant  it.  I  see  no  hope  for 
a  poor  man  like  me,  unless  the 
Son  of  Man   come  again  in  His 


CREED  41 

divine  compassion  to  break  bread 
to  the  multitudes  which  suffer 
and  starve." 

When  the  man  sat  down,  a 
gentleman  of  refined  bearing  rose 
to  speak.  After  a  pause,  in 
which  he  tried  to  master  the 
emotions  which  welled  within 
him,  he  said, — 

''Sir,  if  our  brother  will  come 
to  me  on  Monday  morning,  I 
shall  be  glad  to  offer  him  employ- 
ment, and  to  give  him  *  that 
which  is  just  and  equal,'  for  I 
also  have  a  Master  in  heaven. 
It  may  be  in  my  brother's  power 
to  promote   my   interest,   and   it 


42    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

may  be  in  my  power  to  lift  the 
burden  of  wrong  from  my 
brother's  spirit ;  and  if  so,  I 
shall  thank  God  for  the  oppor- 
tunity." 

*'  Brother  !  "  whispered  the 
man,  as  he  sank  low  in  his  seat ; 
"  did  he  say  '  brother  '  ?  Are  you 
sure  he  said  '  brother '  ? " 

The  big  tears  leaped  down  his 
furrowed  face  as  he  sobbed, — 

"  Oh,  my  God,  I  have  never 
in  all  my  life  been  called 
'  brother '  until  now  !  " 

The  minister  closed  the  ser- 
vice with  the  prayer, — 


CREED  43 

"  Our  Father,  which  art  in 
heaven.  Forgive  us  our  tres- 
passes, as  we  forgive  them  that 
trespass  against  us  !  " 


Chapter   II 

CROSS 

/T^HE  city  church  was  again 
open,  find  the  minister  re- 
newed his  appeal, — 

"Is  there  a  man  here  who  in 
the  mystery  of  suffering  can 
testify  to  the  righteousness  of 
God?" 

"  There  is^ 

The  reply  came  promptly  from 
a  man  whose  incisive  manner  ot 
speaking    was    in    strange    con- 


CROSS  45 

trast  with  his  diminutive  figure. 
It  was  evident  that  his  physical 
development  had  been  arrested 
by  unnatural  conditions.  As  he 
stood  amongst  the  people,  he  was 
very  little  higher  than  those 
around  him  who  remained  seated, 
but  the  fine  mould  of  his  head 
and  the  flash  of  his  eye  showed 
that  the  marred,  misshapen  body 
was  not  the  form  which  Nature 
had  chosen  for  him.  He  waited 
calmly  until  the  gaze  of  the  as- 
sembly had  fixed  upon  him,  when 
he  continued, — 

"  Forty  years  ago  I  was  a  fair- 
haired    boy,    lithe    of    limb,   tall. 


46    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

straight,  and  strong.  I  carried 
my  satchel  to  and  from  school 
with  as  light  a  heart  as  lads  do 
now.  I  never  expected  to  find 
in  life  anything  more  difficult 
than  a  problem  of  Euclid  or  a 
page  of  Virgil.  Life  was  reel- 
ing out  to  me  a  fair  sheet,  and 
I  was  beginning  to  fill  it  with 
the  brilliant  romances  of  ima- 
gination. In  my  self-esteem  I 
was  a  born  hero.  Nothing  less 
than  a  championship  of  some 
sort  would  do  for  me.  I  was 
too  good  to  be  buckled  in  worn 
harness,  and  yoked  to  pull  the 
old    plough    in  a    turnip   patch. 


CROSS  47 

If  they  attempted  to  deal  with 
'me  like  that,  I  meant  to  kick. 
Let  those  plod  in  ruts  that  liked 
it.  I  didn't  like  it,  and  I 
wouldn't  plod. 

''  My  idea  was  to  command,  to 
get  into  the  front  rank,  to  do 
something  uncommon,  to  create 
a  sensation.  I  wanted  to  fly  be- 
fore I  had  got  my  wing  feathers  ; 
but  I  see-sawed  over  the  edge 
of  the  nest  and  fell  into  the 
ditch.  That  didn't  cure  me. 
When  my  pinions  had  somewhat 
grown,  I  said  to  my  brother 
hedge-sparrows , — 

'''Good -bye!    I'm  off!      Now 


48    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

you  watch  me,  and  I  will  show 
you  how  to  soar  as  high  as  an 
eagle.'  But  when  I  came  down, 
they  laughed  at  me,  and  said,— 

<* '  Why,  you  didn't  get  as  high 
as  the  tree-tops! '  " 

"If  our  friend,"  interposed  the 
minister,  "  is  giving  us  a  sample 
of  his  humour,  it  is  beside  the 
mark.  The  question  before  the 
Church  is  too  serious  to  be 
answered  in  a  frivolous  vein." 

"  Sir,"  replied  the  speaker, 
*'  what  you  brand  as  frivolous 
is  to  me  a  dispensation  of  God. 
If  God  had  not  shown  me  how 
to    extract     the    balm,    I     coukl 


CROSS  49 

never  have  drank  the   bitters  of 

my  cup.     If  He  had  not   taught 

me  where  to  seek  the  bright  side 

of  my  lot,  the  dark  side  would 

have  been  doom.     If  I  by  mirth 

have  challenged  agonies,   it  has 

not  been  in  the  cause  of  defiance, 

but  of  endurance.      I   hold   that 

a  man  who  exults   when    other 

men  despair  is  a  conqueror  and 

a  philanthropist.     It  were  surely 

as  great    a  service  to  humanity 

to    weave    a    wreath    of    smiles 

as    to    cork    up    a    bottleful     of 

tears." 

"Go  on,  sir,"  said  the  minister, 

who    by    this    time    had    recog- 
4 


50    THE    GREATER   GOSPEL 

nised  beneath  the  speaker's 
gnarled  exterior  a  man  of  strong 
individuality. 

"  Before  I  was  twenty-one," 
continued  the  stranger,  '*  I  began 
a  series  of  fights  with  Death, 
and  with  the  Devil,  who  glared 
at  me  over  Death's  shoulders. 
I  will  not  risk  a  morbid  mood 
by  rehearsing  painful  details. 
Suffice  it  to  say,  that  by  accident 
and  disease  I  am  what  I  am. 
Look  at  me!  I  shall  not  shrink 
or  blench.  I  have  lived  too  long 
under  the  gaze  of  man's  chief 
foe  to  fear  the  eye  of  man  him- 
self.     My    early    manhood    was 


CROSS  51 

spent  and  spent  out  in  wrestling 
with  the  last  enemy.  He  was 
first  and  last  to  me.  He  closed 
with  me,  gripped  me,  threw  me, 
and  as  you  see  he  made  his  mark 
upon  me ;  yet  withal  I  lived,  and 
the  devil  carried  on  the  assault. 
"  The  greatest  trial  of  my  life 
was  when  my  mother  saw  the 
wreckage  of  her  son.  I  thought 
she  had  staked  her  all  upon  me, 
and  I  wondered  how  she  would 
bear  her  loss.  I  was  afraid  the 
sight  of  me  would  break  her 
heart,  but  not  a  tear  dimmed  my 
brave  mother's  eye.  When  my 
symmetry  was  gone,  and  all  my 


52    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

aspirations  were  quenched,  and 
my  crippled  form  was  left  a  mere 
remnant  of  what  I  once  had  been 
— when  to  all  appearance  I  was 
reduced  from  ability  and  promise 
to  eke  out  a  livelihood  with  the 
meanest  opportunities,  I  never 
saw  my  mother  cast  a  complain- 
ing look  toward  heaven.  I  rose 
from  my  bed  to  see  my  mother 
succumb  to  pitiless  disease  and 
the  darkness  of  a  hopeless  night 
close  over  her. 

''  I  was  angry.  A  burning 
sense  of  wrong  inflamed  me.  I 
cried,  '  Why  is  this  ?  My 
mother,  so  pure  and  patient  and 


CROSS  53 

self  -  sacrificing ;  who  has  not 
withheld  her  gifts  or  family,  or 
any  of  life's  cherished  interests, 
from  God ;  who  has  lived  and 
loved  for  the  sake  of  others — why 
is  she  bereft  of  the  light  with- 
out which  existence  is  insup- 
portable? Why  am  I  scathed, 
crippled,  bent  and  branded, 
while  others  walk  with  elastic 
step  and  head  erect  ?  Why  am 
I  denied  the  heritage  of  youth 
and  laden  with  the  infirmities  of 
age,  before  I  have  tasted  any 
of  the  joys  of  manhood  ? 

''In   that  cry    of  anger   there 
came    to    me    the    Christ.      The 


54    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

crown  of  thorns  was  upon  His 
brow,  His  hands  were  pierced, 
His  side  was  wounded,  and  His 
visage  '  marred  more  than  any 
man.'     He  said, — 

'' '  What  is  that  to  thee  ? 
Follow  thou  Me.' 

"The  answer  was  a  test  of 
fortitude;  but  as  I  continued  to 
follow,  the  meaning  came. 

*'  I  saw  that  Christ  was  first 
in  the  mystery  of  suffering. 
First  to  meet  the  tempter.  First 
to  bear  my  griefs  and  carry  my 
sorrows.  First  to  tread  the  wine- 
press alone.  First  in  the  experi- 
ence of  mortal  agonies  to  say, — 


CROSS  55 

*' '  Father,  not  My  will,  but 
Thine  be  done.' 

"First  to  endure  the  cross. 

"The  stricken  Christ  called 
me  to  take  up  my  cross  yester- 
day. He  calls  me  to  take  it  up 
to-day.  He  will  call  me  to  take 
it  up  to-morrow.  But  He  calls 
me  from  His  own  cross,  and  I 
cry — '  Lord,  help  me.'  As  I 
take  up  my  cross,  I  see  in  every 
life  a  cross,  and  I  see  every 
cross  catching  the  light  which 
shines  from  the  Cross  of  the 
Christ. 

"  To  know  the  fatherhood  of 
the  Father,  I  study  the  sonship 


56    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

of  His  Son.  In  that  inspired 
study  I  have  found  a  new  centre, 
from  which  life  is  no  longer 
bounded  by  the  ambitions  of  the 
flesh,  but  widened  into  the 
eternity  of  God. 

"  Shall  I  hold  these  painful 
years  as  a  charge  against  my 
Maker?  Shall  I  insert  them  to 
be  read  between  the  lines  of 
God's  precious  promises,  as  so 
much  to  be  deducted  from  the 
main  sum?  Shall  these  memo- 
ries sink  me  in  the  mire  until  I 
am  too  deep  in  the  pit  of  pessi- 
mism to  look  over  its  weird 
brim  ?      Shall   I   so  misinterpret 


CROSS  57 

the  trials  of  my  faith,  when  it 
is  written  of  the  Son  of  God 
that  'He  learned  obedience  by 
the  things  which  He  suffered '  ? 

*'  Rather  let  me  carry  these 
forty  years  unto  my  Father, 
and  say, — ■ 

" '  See,  my  Father,  I  have 
drank  of  Christ's  cup,  and  been 
baptized  with  His  baptism.  I 
have  suffered  with  Him.  The 
cross  of  His  life  and  the  cross 
of  my  life  are  still  waiting  to 
be  explained ;  but  I  follow  on, 
that  we  may  be  glorified  to- 
gether.' 

"  So  far  as  finite  life  may  wit- 


58    THE  GREATER   GOSPEL 

ness  to  the  infinite  life  of  God 
I  desire  to  witness.  God  in  my 
life  is  all  that  He  claims  to  be — 
perfect  in  righteousness,  perfect 
in  love.  If  criticism  retort  that 
one  man's  life  is  not  reliable 
evidence  for  the  community,  my 
answer  is  that  I  do  not  witness 
to  the  community — I  witness  to 
the  one  man  who  is  seriously 
asking,  '  What  is  truth  ?  '  and 
I  say  to  that  one  man,  '  God 
in  my  life  satisfies  my  intellect, 
satisfies  my  conscience,  satisfies 
my  heart.'  Sir,  I  am  not  one 
that  would  stifle  honest  doubt. 
To  repress  critical  inquiry  would, 


CROSS  59 

in  my  opinion,  cause  a  block  to 
religious  progress.  Whatever 
criticism  can  give  to  me  which 
it  has  realized  in  conscientious 
search  of  truth  I  receive  and 
value  as  a  contribution  to  the 
principles  which  rule  the  desti- 
nies of  men ;  and  whatever  I 
can  offer  to  criticism  in  which 
my  faith  has  found  a  positive 
experience,  criticism  is  bound  to 
accept  it  with  equal  candour,  or 
forfeit  its  claim  to  be  heard  in 
the  controversies  of  the  age. 

"  No  man  can  seek  truth  with 
all  his  heart,  no  matter  what 
may    be    his     deviations     from 


6o    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

orthodox  forms,  without  being 
a  contributor  to  truth ;  and  no 
man  can  despise  in  another 
findings  which  necessitate  the 
readjustment  of  his  opinions 
without  disabling  his  own  intel- 
lect. If  prejudice  be  allowed  to 
lead,  or  foregone  conclusion  be 
entrusted  to  pioneer,  or  bias  or 
b'gotry  carry  our  banners,  we 
may  reach  some  point  which 
we  have  coveted,  but  we  shall 
not  reach  truth.  He  who  turns 
back  because  the  compass  refuses 
to  give  up  pointing  to  the  pole 
must  surely  be  a  fool.  He  who 
cries,     '  The     battle     is     lost  !  ' 


CROSS  6i 

because  the  first  line  is  broken, 
would  do  well  to  look  into  the 
calm  countenance  of  the  King, 
who  sits  *  expecting  till  His 
enemies  be  made  His  foot- 
stool.' 

"  When  the  historians  have 
interviewed  the  front-rank  men, 
will  they  be  qualified  to  write 
the  campaign  of  life  ?  Will  they 
not  need  to  complete  their  studies 
among  the  sufferers  in  the  rear  ? 
The  competition  of  strength  is 
full  of  surprises.  Again  and 
again  we  see  that  the  race  is 
not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle 
to    the   strong, — that    victory  is 


62    THE    GREATER   GOSPEL 

entrusting  her  ensigns  to  men 
whose  hearts  are  loyal,  even 
though  their  nerves  be  shattered. 
''  When  unbelief  shall  have 
silenced  the  pulpits,  and  locked 
the  doors  of  all  the  churches, 
and  thrust  the  sons  of  thunder 
and  of  consolation  into  exile,  and 
there  shall  come  forth  scoffers — 
when  the  front  line  is  driven  in, 
and  the  main  centre  yields  to 
pressure,  and  the  key  of  the 
position  is  threatened,  God  will 
call  out  His  reserv^es,  and  un- 
belief and  hell  shall  see  that 
from  the  ambulances  and  the 
hospitals  come  men  and  women 


CROSS  63 

of  holy  intrepidity,   but   with  a 
thorn  in  the  flesh. 

*'  In  the  crisis  when  men's 
hearts  are  trembling  for  the  ark 
of  God  there  shall  be  felt  the 
awe  of  God's  almightiness,  and 
it  shall  be  known  that  human 
suffering  is  invested  with  Divine 
attributes  of  invincible  power, 
God  shall  be  heard  to  say,  *  My 
strength  is  made  perfect  in 
weakness  '  ;  and  His  stricken 
ones,  who  were  reckoned  of  no 
account  against  the  giants  of 
the  foe,  shall  respond  in  the 
power  of  Christ :  ^  When  I  am 
weak,  then  am  I  strong.' 


04    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

''Out  of  the  white  heat  of  the 
fires  of  discipline  there  shall 
come  forth  voices  to  demonstrate 
the  truth  of  God.  The  unbelief 
which  would  blast  its  furnaces 
to  an  intensity  seven  times 
hotter  than  they  are  wont  to 
be,  however  it  may  scorch  the 
forms  of  godliness,  can  cast  no 
smell  of  fire  upon  God's  chosen 
witnesses. 

"  Sir,  you  asked  for  a  testi- 
mony out  of  the  deeps  and 
mysteries  of  human  suffering, 
and  I  have  given  it.  I  confess 
to  being  '  perplexed,  but  not  in 
despair,'  '  cast  down,  but  not  de- 


CROSS  65 

stroyed.'  It  is  mine  to  prove 
that  '  whom  the  Lord  loveth  He 
chasteneth.'  It  is  mine  to  watch 
the  inter-working  worlds  as  *  our 
light  affliction,  which  is  for  the 
moment,  worketh  for  us  more 
and  more  exceedingly  an  eternal 
weight  of  glory.'  God's  ways 
are  beyond  my  understanding  ; 
but  I  lean  my  bewildered  head 
against  the  cross,  and  my  heart 
tells  me  that  'God  is  love.'" 

**  In  the  remarkable  testimony 
to  which  we  have  just  listened," 
said  the  minister,  "  we  have 
evidence     that     the    problem    of 


human     suffering     and     Divine 


66    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

goodness  can  never  be  solved 
by  an  effort  of  the  intellect. 
The  science  of  life  gives  no 
clue  to  this  mystery.  It  re- 
mains inscrutable.  Reason  is 
dismayed.  Our  explorers  are 
out  in  all  directions  searching 
into  the  phenomena  of  Nature, 
and  to  every  man  v^ho  advances 
into  the  vast  unknown  a  step 
further  than  his  predecessors 
have  done  we  award  the  highest 
honour.  Earth  is  under  minute 
survey,  and,  so  far  as  it  may 
be  made  a  standpoint  for  the 
observation  of  other  worlds,  our 
experts  are  taking  advantage  of 


CROSS  67 

every  opportunity.  Creatures 
extinct  are  exhumed  in  their 
fossil  state  to  bear  witness  to 
the  silent  ages  of  the  past.  Life 
in  every  province  is  summoned  to 
give  evidence.  The  tiniest  insect 
is  made  to  speak,  and  creatures 
tinier  still — too  small  for  the 
human  eye  to  see — are  provided 
with  the  means  to  make  them- 
selves visible  and  to  contribute 
their  little  store  of  knowledge. 
Nature  is  constrained  to  yield 
her  secrets.  Where  our  fathers 
went  back  for  a  few  thousand 
years  only,  we  go  back  for 
millions.      We     seem    to    have 


68    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

used  up  all  we  had  of  time,  and 
to  be  already  in  eternity. 

*'  The  sacred  books  which 
claim  to  possess  Divine  authority 
are  subject  to  the  same  scrutiny. 
Page  by  page,  and  line  by  line, 
these  books  are  tested  by  every 
method  known  to  scholarship. 
Yet,  withal,  the  mystery  of  suf- 
fering, and  the  mystery  of  man, 
and  the  mystery  of  God  are 
beyond  the  most  daring  efforts 
of  the  mind.  It  is  only  when 
we  deal  with  these  questions  as 
our  brother  has  done — when  we 
carry  them  into  the  province 
of  faith  and    enter   the  holy  of 


CROSS  69 

holies  and  commune  with  God 
— that  we  are  enabled  to  study 
them  in  *  the  light  of  life.' 

"  By  faith  Moses  '  endured,  as 
seeing  Him  who  is  invisible.' 

"By  faith  the  Apostle  Paul 
said :  '  And  we  know  that  to 
them  that  love  God  all  things 
work  together  for  good,  even 
to  them  that  are  called  accord- 
ing to  His  purpose.' 

"  By  faith  Cowper  wrote, — 

'Ye  fearful  saints,  fresh  courage  take  ! 

The  clouds  ye  so  much  dread 
Are  big  with  mercy,  and  shall  break 

In  blessings  on  your  head. 
Judge  not  the  Lord  by  feeble  sense, 

But  trust  Him  for  His  fjrace  ; 


70    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

Behind  a  frowning  Providence 
He  hides  a  smiling  face.' 

"  By  faith  Tennyson  testified, — 

'  More   things    are    wrought    by    prayer 
than  this  world  dreams  of.' 

''While  Philosophy  sighs  before 
the  altar  which  it  has  reared 
'To  the  Unknown,'  Faith  says: 
'  Let  us  therefore  draw  near 
with  boldness  unto  the  throne 
of  grace,  that  we  may  receive 
mercy,  and  may  find  grace  to 
help  us  in  time  of  need.'  God 
is  nearer  than  man's  estimates. 
We  are  not  separated  from  the 
Divine  presence  by  some  un- 
fa thomed  gulf.     We  are  not  cut 


CROSS  71 

off  from  heaven  by  the  with- 
drawal of  Jacob's  ladder.  We 
are  not  disinherited  by  the 
crucifying  of  the  Christ.  Out 
of  the  mournful  mystery  of  the 
Cross  Jesus  Himself  draws  near 
to  dispel  our  doubts,  and  there 
have  been  times  when  our 
hearts  burned  as  He  talked 
with  us  in  the  way.  If  the 
world  could  not  contain  the 
records  of  Christ's  deeds,  surely 
it  is  not  for  us  to  say  that  the 
lines  which  we  endorse,  and 
those  only,  mark  the  outermost 
confines  of  the  truth !  '  The 
Greater  Gospel '   reveals  a   wide 


72    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

horizon.  Where  we  had  reached 
— as  we  thought — the  final  land- 
mark in  the  Divine  enterprise, 
we  discern  its  outposts  far  ahead 
of  our  advance.  Where  we  had 
written  the  end  of  our  faith  we 
may  write  the  preface.  Let 
'  The  Greater  Gospel '  be  pub- 
lishcd  in  parallel  columns  with 
our  small  editions,  and  we  shall 
see  how  much  we  have  yet  to 
learn,  and  how  much  more  there 
is  of  heaven  on  earth  than  we 
supposed.  We  do  not  need  to 
grieve  over  an  absent  Christ; 
we  only  need  that  our  eyes  may 
be  opened.     We  do  not  need  any 


CROSS  73 

new  treaty  to  hold  the  minis- 
tering spirits  as  our  allies ; 
we  only  need  a  more  responsive 
sympathy.  We  do  not  need 
'  strange  fire '  to  give  us 
warmth ;  we  only  need  to  do 
as  a  great  and  noble  mind  once 
did  —  that  is,  bring  ourselves 
'  intentionally  and  purposely 
within  the  sphere  of  such  in- 
fluences as  can  kindle.' 

"  The  same  devoted  man  ^  said 
*  I    cannot  light    my    own    fire ; 
but    whenever    I    get     my    fire 
lighted  from  another  life,  I  can 

'  The  Rev.  Frederick  W.  Robertson, 
M.A. 


74    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

carry  the  living  flame  as  my 
own  into  other  subjects,  which 
become  illuminated  in  the  flame. 
It  is  wonderful  how  powerless 
I  am,  except  as  working  from 
life.' 

'^And  we  are  all  powerless 
until  we  are  thus  brought  into 
sympathy  with  other  lives,  es- 
pecially with  the  one  ideal  life 
and  its  ever  -  present  Cross. 
There  is  nothing  inspiring, 
nothing  creative,  nothing  to  put 
our  personal  force  into  a  glow 
in  movements  which  are  merely 
mechanical.  There  is  soul  in 
sacrifice.      And    I    believe    that 


CROSS  75 

our  brother  who  is  resting  his 
head  upon  the  Cross,  and  listen- 
ing to  love,  is  not  far  from  the 
best  possible  settlement  of  all  the 
mysteries  and  all  the  relation- 
ships of  life. 

"The  yearning  for  greater  near- 
ness to  God  must  meet  with  its 
desire  when  its  cry  is, — 

'  E'en  though   it  be  a  Cross  that  rais- 
eth  me.'" 

The  minister  closed  the  ser- 
vice with  the  prayer, — 

"  Even  so,  Father :  for  so  it 
seemed  good  in  Thy  sight." 


Chapter   III 

CROWN 

A  THIRD  time  the  city 
^  ^  minister  appealed  to  his 
congregation, — 

"  Is  there  in  this  church  a 
man  who  by  the  inspiration  of 
a  personal  faith  is  looking  con- 
fidently for  the  coming  of 
Christ's  kingdom? 

"  I  had  thought  to  ask  for  a 
hundred  witnesses.  I  had  pur- 
posed  to   appeal   to    the   Church 

76 


CROWN  77 

as  a  community,  but  I  have 
asked  for  a  rnan^  inasmuch  as 
this  question — great  as  it  is — 
must  be  settled  with  the  in- 
dividual." 

A  dead  silence  fell  on  the 
assembly,  which  was  broken  by 
a  man  who  made  the  startling 
response, — 

*'  You  have  appealed  to  men 
of  faith.  You  expect  a  man  of 
your  own  make  to  take  his  cue 
from  your  lips.  Dare  you  ex- 
tend your  challenge  to  men  ol 
doubt?  Because  I  am  a  free- 
thinker, but  negations  do  not 
satisfy   my   nature.      When    ne- 


78    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

gations  have  emphasized  their 
monotonous  'No,'  my  reason  is 
ready  with  more  questions.  It 
is  not  in  free-thought  to  pro- 
nounce the  positive  side  of  life ; 
but  if  there  be  such  a  side,  free- 
thought  would  Hke  to  find  it.  If 
I  be  judged  by  your  standards, 
I  have  no  faith  at  all,  I  know 
nothing,  I  am  driven  by  the  in- 
satiable demands  of  my  being  to 
criticise  the  claims  of  Churches. 
It  is  as  natural  to  me  to  specu- 
late as  it  is  to  many  of  you 
to  believe.  But  my  scepticism 
touches  the  instruments — or,  if 
you    like,    the     professors  —  en- 


CROWN  79 

gaged  to  carry  Christ's  kingdom 
through  the  world,  rather  than 
the  kingdom  itself. 

"  If  you  venture  to  stake  the 
prospects  of  Christ's  kingdom  on 
a  typical  church-goer,  you  are 
leaning  on  a  bruised  reed.  Why 
should  the  Church  be  considered 
the  only  standpoint  from  which 
to  examine  a  subject  like  this? 
Why  not  take  the  world  into 
your  confidence?  Is  not  a  sin- 
ner as  much  interested  in  this 
inquiry  as  a  saint?  The  saints 
are  safe.  You  speak  of  them  as 
the  elect,  who  have  nothing  to 
risk    and    everything    to    gain. 


8o    THE   GREATER  GOSPEL 

But  a  sinner  who  is  driving  a 
hard  bargain  with  the  world  for 
the  price  of  his  soul,  who  is 
playing  a  close  game  of  life  and 
death,  if  he  can  reserve  a  spark 
of  immortality  to  cast  its  gleam 
upon  this  subject,  it  surely  must 
be  worth  your  while  to  have  a 
care  that  you  do  not  blow  that 
spark  out !  We  sceptics  do  not 
want  Barabbas — he  was  a  mur- 
derer. We  do  not  want  Judas — 
he  was  a  betrayer.  We  do  not 
want  Simon  Magus — he  was  a 
hypocrite.  We  do  not  want 
Caiaphas — he  was  a  bigot.  We 
do    not     want     scrupulous    sec- 


CROWN  81 

taries,  who  will  find  fault  if  we 
be  not  pulled  out  of  the  pit  on 
their  days  and  with  their  har- 
ness. We  do  not  want  punc- 
tilious forms,  which  shut  the 
door  against  the  sinner  because 
he  is  a  sinner.  We  want  the 
sympathetic  heart,  which  cries : 
'Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that 
labour  and  are  heavy  laden,  and 
I  will  give  you  rest.'  We  want 
a  brotherhood  of  helpers,  with  a 
mission  not  to  be  always  preach- 
ing at  us,  but  to  be  ready  with 
a  grip  of  the  hand  when  we 
need  it.    Why  does  the  Church 

go  on  calling   the   righteous  in- 
6 


82    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

Stead  of  sinners  to  repentance  ? 
And  why  are  the  physicians  so 
attentive  to  them  that  are  whole 
when  there  are  so  many  sick? 
Why  cavil  about  chief  seats  at 
the  King's  table,  when  there  are 
so  many  in  the  streets  and  lanes, 
highways  and  hedges,  waiting 
to  be  His  guests?  Let  the 
Pharisee  push  aside  the  velvet 
cushion,  on  which  he  thanks  God 
that  he  is  better  than  other  men 
are,  and  make  room  for  the  pub- 
lican, who  is  sobbing  in  the 
porch:  'God  be  merciful  to  me 
a  sinner.'  Let  the  priest,  who  is 
hurrying    by    to    some    distant 


CROWN  83 

function,  step  across  the  way, 
where  a  case  lies  ready  to  his 
hand.  Let  the  shepherd,  who  is 
fussing  over  the  ninety  and  nine 
sheep  which  are  safe  in  the  fold, 
go  after  the  wanderer  which  is 
astray  on  the  wilds. 

"Will  it  forward  God's  work 
to  pray :  '  Thy  kingdom  come, 
Thy  will  be  done,'  when  our 
own  will  is  heading  a  mutiny 
against  Divine  supremacy  ?  Will 
it  please  Heaven  to  continue 
carrying  gifts  to  the  altar  when 
the  prior  claims  of  brotherly  re- 
conciliation are  unpaid  ?  How  is 
it  that  bickering  brethren  in  the 


84    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

churches  have  dropped  the  lesson 
of  forgiveness  below  seven  times, 
when  their  Lord  and  Master 
raised  it  to  seventy  times  seven  ? 
Is  it  seemly  to  be  wrangling  " 
with  a  fellow  -  servant  about 
his  debt  of  twenty  pence,  when 
our  ow^n  arrears  of  five  hundred 
have  just  been  remitted?  Is  it 
consistent  to  teach  that  '  whoso- 
ever will  be  a  friend  of  the  world 
is  the  enemy  of  God,'  and  at 
the  same  time  to  treat  with 
the  world  for  the  set  of  its 
fashions  and  the  loan  of  its 
pleasures  ? 

"We  do  not   criticise  Christ's 


CROWN  85 

kingdom.  We  do  criticise  its 
interpreters  and  representatives. 
Give  us  Christ's  wide  sym- 
pathies, His  broad  interpreta- 
tions, His  impartial  judgments, 
His  respect  to  humanity  without 
the  trammels  of  caste.  Give  us 
a  Church  which  makes  love  its 
practice  as  well  as  its  law, 
which  makes  Christ  its  spirit 
as  fully  as  its  profession.  Give 
us  a  Church  which  is  Christian 
because  it  is  Christlike,  and  we 
will  exchange  our  doubts  for 
your  faith,  and  join  with  you  in 
looking  for  the  kingdom  of  God." 
"Has  he  done,  sir?"   inquired 


86    THE    GREATER  GOSPEL 

a  well  -  dressed  working  man. 
'^  Has  he  found  gaps  enough  for 
all  his  black  sheep?  Let  him 
come  with  me ;  I  can  show  him 
a  man  who  is  worth  looking 
at.  Twelve  months  ago  a  fellow 
came  into  our  fitting  shop,  and 
when  we  got  to  know  he  was 
religious,  we  branded  him  a 
sneak.  We  set  our  traps  to 
catch  him.  We  chaffed  him, 
bullied  him,  assailed  his  temper 
with  jibes  and  sneers  ;  and  when 
he  turned  to  us  a  patient  spirit, 
and  said  something  about  pray- 
ing for  them  that  despitefully 
use    you,    we    cursed    him   as  a 


CROWN  87 

coward,  and  told  him  to  go  to 
hell  with  his  hypocrisy.  What 
did  we  know  about  religion  ? 
We  had  seen  nothing  of  it  but 
cant  and  sham.  As  for  the 
Bible,  we  only  read  it  to  find 
occasion  to  blaspheme.  But 
when  the  ringleader  of  our  set 
fell  ill  of  fever,  and  this  man 
sat  up  night  after  night  to 
nurse  him,  and  drew  a  good 
lump  of  his  savings  out  of  the 
bank  to  help  the  family  while 
their  bread-winner  was  down, 
then  we  changed  our  note,  but 
we  didn't  give  in  till  we  were 
4ead-beat. 


88   THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

**  If  argument  could  have 
brought  our  man  down,  there 
were  fellows  in  our  shop  who  were 
skilled  in  the  use  of  that  weapon 
— hard-headed  fellows  who  had 
not  skimmed  the  scum  and 
froth  of  scepticism,  but  who 
had  drilled  their  brains  by  stiff 
reading  and  sharp  practice. 
We  boasted  in  our  shop  that 
we  could  floor  any  antagonist 
who  presumed  to  debate  with 
us,  and  we  did  floor  many  a 
man  whose  character  would  not 
sustain  his  cause.  But  this 
man  bided  his  time  and  lived 
his    life,    and    that    stopped    all 


CROWN  89 

our  arguing.  When  we  saw 
how  he  risked  his  life  and 
denied  himself  to  save  our  sick 
mate,  and  how  ready  he  was 
to  do  a  chap  a  good  turn,  and 
to  back  up  right,  we  were 
struck  all  of  a  heap.  We  had 
watched  him  for  a  flaw,  and 
proved  him  sound  metal.  The 
shams  were  on  our  side,  not  on 
his.  And  if  it  will  help  your 
reckoning,  sir,  about  the  coming 
of  Christ's  kingdom,  I  make 
bold  to  say  that  it  is  coming  in 
our  fitting  shop,  coming  fast,  and 
that  the  one  loyal  life  will  soon 
be  multiplied  by  many  more." 


90   THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

"I  thank  you,"  replied  the 
minister,  "and  I  thank  God 
that  you  have  been  able  before 
this  congregation  to  give  such 
manly  acknowledgment  of  Chris- 
tian character.  The  power 
before  which  reason — and  even 
ribaldry — bows  with  such  re- 
spect, must  be  a  factor  in  any 
forecast  which  anticipates  the 
final  triumph  of  the  gospel. 

"  Nevertheless,  I  accept  the 
rebuke  of  the  first  speaker,  yet 
withal  I  read,  between  the  lines 
of  his  address,  the  Greater 
Gospel,  which  already  fills  the 
atmosphere   of  life.      Does    our 


CROWN  91 

brother  demand  to  know  when 
the  kingdom  of  God  shall  come  ? 
The  answer  is  from  those  deep 
soul  depths  which  lie  beyond 
the  letter,  and  where  faith  is 
the  only  sense  which  can  recog- 
nise the  signs  of  our  Lord's 
advancing  sovereignty.  If  our 
brother  will  consult  with  Christ 
in  his  own  heart,  he  will  get 
the  reply  more  quickly.  If  the 
presence  of  Christ  be  only  known 
by  His  knock  at  the  closed 
door,  there  cannot  be  any  inti- 
mate fellowship  with  Him.  The 
heart  must  open  and  admit  the 
King    before   it    is   competent  to 


92    THE    GREATER   GOSPEL 

estimate     the    strength    of    His 
kingdom. 

*'  Does  our  brother  think  that 
it  was  ever  the  purpose  of  Christ 
to  estabUsh  His  kingdom  by  a 
coup  de  main  ?  Did  He  finish 
the  work  which  His  Father 
gave  Him  to  do,  without  His 
temptations  and  His  tears?  Did 
He  carry  His  spotless  character 
unassailed  by  the  reproaches  of 
men?  When  He  gkiddened  the 
people's  homes  with  His  light 
and  love,  His  slanderers  said : 
'  Behold,  a  gluttonous  man,  and 
a  wine  bibber.'  When  He  in 
His  divine  compassion  healed  the 


CROWN  93 

demoniacs,  His  critics  said: 
'  This  man  doth  not  cast  out 
devils,  but  by  Beelzebub,  the 
prince  of  the  devils.'  When 
the  glitter  of  the  crown  was  on 
His  brow,  He  substituted  for  it 
the  shadow  of  the  Cross. 

"  He  did  not  leave  a  perfect 
Church ;  but  He  lived  a  perfect 
life,  and  wrought  a  perfect 
work.  He  did  not  choose  to 
wait  in  splendid  isolation  until 
the  human  mind  was  more' 
receptive  and  the  human  heart 
ready  with  a  warmer  welcome. 
He  taught  so  far  as  He  saw 
His  teaching  could  be    effective, 


94    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

so  far  as  the  human  mind 
could  comprehend  it.  Then  He 
paused,  and  said  to  His  disciples, 
'  I  have  yet  many  things  to 
say  unto  you,  but  ye  cannot 
bear  them  now.'  Even  His  lips 
were  sealed  with  a  reserve 
which  could  not  be  removed 
until  the  '  Spirit  of  truth ' 
brought  the  inspiration  of  clearer 
light. 

''  The  disciples  who  were  pri- 
vileged with  personal  fellowship 
with  Christ  were  far  from  per- 
fect; but  our  Lord  did  not  dis- 
miss them.  His  keenest  rebukes 
were    tempered    with    pity    for 


CROWN  95 

their  ignorances  and  errors.  To 
one,  He  said :  '  What  thou 
doest,  do  quickly.'  To  another: 
*  Ye  know  not  what  manner  of 
spirit  ye  are  of ! '  To  another : 
'  Reach  hither  thy  finger,  and 
see  My  hands ;  and  reach  hither 
thy  hand,  and  put  it  into  My 
side:  and  be  not  faithless,  but 
believing.'  To  another,  *  Lovest 
thou  Me  ? ' 

''  If  Christ  made  as  many  ob- 
jections against  His  followers 
as  criticism  does  now,  His  king- 
dom could  not  be  carried  on  by 
human  instruments.  Christ  did 
not  found  His  kingdom  for    an 


96    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

age  or  for  a  nation:  He  founded 
it  for  all  men  and  for  ever. 
And  that  is  why  our  brother 
who  has  just  spoken  sees  less 
of  the  kingdom  in  its  represen- 
tatives than  his  criticisms  de- 
mand. He  waits  to  see  every 
Christian  at  his  full  stature, 
and  every  Church  a  finished 
fabric,  before  he  enrols  himself 
on  the  Lord's  side.  He  can 
hardly  claim  much  heroism  in 
his  enlistment  if  he  defer  it 
until  the  King's  trumpets  are 
sounding  '  victory.' 

"It  is  easier  to  stir  up  enthu- 
siasm for  a  theory  than  to  sub- 


CROWN  97 

due  a  lust   of  the   flesh ;    but   it 

is  more  to  master  an  evil  passion 

than  to  spread  a  theory.      It  is 

easier  to  admire  the   plan    of  a 

building  than  to  lay  a  brick,  but 

it   is  more   to   lay  a  brick   than 

to  admire  the  plan.     It  is  easier 

to     applaud    an     ideal     Church 

than  to  learn  the  simplest  lesson 

in    Christian  charity;   but   it   is 

more  to  do  an  act  of  love  than 

to  praise  an  ideal  Church.     It  is 

easier  to  stick  a  protest  on   the 

prison  door  than   to  minister  to 

the  sick   Christ;   but   it   is  more 

to  sympathise  with   the  sufferer 

within   than   to    parade    protests 
7 


98    THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

without.  The  gifts  which  Christ 
has  pledged  Himself  to  recom- 
pense when  He  comes  in  the 
greatness  of  His  power  are 
the  little  gifts  which  a  hun- 
gry, thirsty,  naked,  homeless 
stranger  never  forgets. 

''The  Almighty  Creator  did 
not  build  the  universe  on  the 
principle  that  man  should  have 
nothing  to  do  in  it  but  to  ad- 
mire it.  God  did  not  give  to 
Adam  and  Eve  a  complete  uni- 
verse. It  was  complete  for  their 
needs,  but  it  w^ould  not  be  com- 
plete for  ours.  We  could  not 
get  our  world  into  Adam's  Eden. 


CROWN  99 

The  universe  was  built  so  that 
generation  after  generation  might 
go  on  building.  The  vast  re- 
sources of  the  earth  were  stored 
until  man  should  have  grown 
competent  to  understand  and  use 
them.  Meanwhile  our  ancestors 
fashioned  their  flint  axes  and 
arrow  heads,  and  put  their  in- 
ventive genius  in  operation. 
We  pick  up  a  flint  implement 
to-day,  and  we  say :  '  If  I  could 
take  the  maker  of  this  imple- 
ment into  a  modern  tool  shop, 
it  would  be  to  his  crude  con- 
ceptions a  workshop  of  the 
gods.' 


TOO  THE    GREATER   GOSPEL 

'*  The  dead  husbandman  has 
left  a  good  record  with  his 
scythe  and  sickle,  and  the  dead 
housewife  may  be  comforted  in 
the  fact  that  hand-sewn  goods 
have  still  a  special  value  in  the 
market.  Grandsons  and  grand- 
daughters are  not  yet  so  far 
ahead  of  their  grandfathers  and 
grandmothers  that  they  may 
boast.  It  is  hard  to  realize  that 
the  days  of  pack-horses  and 
eighteenpenny  posts  are  linked 
by  so  short  an  interval  with 
the  days  of  electricity  and  steam. 
But  if  our  fathers  had  declined 
to  harness  and  trudge  over  their 


CROWN  loi 

few  miles  an  hour  —  if  they 
had  waited  for  rapid  transit 
and  cheaper  communication,  we 
should  not  have  been  travelling 
at  express  speed  and  talking 
through  telephones  to-day.  We 
take  our  railway  tickets  and 
send  our  telegrams  as  matters  of 
every-day  necessity ;  but  to  speak 
of  Adam  and  Eve  as  doing  so, 
would,  at  least,  serve  to  show 
what  a  measureless  process  of 
revelation  must  have  been  pass- 
ing through  the  human  mind. 
Let  us  not,  however,  permit  our 
vanity  to  think  we  are  in  ad- 
vance of    unreckonable    periods. 


I02  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

If  we  are  in  advance  of  yester- 
day, that  is  all  we  can  legiti- 
mately claim. 

'*  Possibly  some  leaders  in  for- 
ward movements  may  look  back 
on  the  last  century  as  rudi- 
mentary, but  it  has  made  its 
mark ;  and  the  next  century 
may,  in  the  same  sense,  look 
back  on  this,  but  it  also  will 
have  made  its  mark ;  and  when 
the  history  of  the  world  we 
live  in  shall  be  complete,  the 
man  of  whom  there  can  be  no 
honourable  mention  will  be 
the  man  who  buried  his  talent 
in  the  earth.     If  we  could  look 


CROWN  103 

forward  as  we  look  back,  we 
should  not  believe  the  things 
that  would  appear ;  yet  these 
things  will,  in  their  turn,  become 
historical.  Reason  has  yet  to 
learn  that  its  only  resting-place 
is  Faith ;  and  Faith  has  to 
learn  that  its  rest  is  not  in 
the  revelations  but  in  the  Re- 
vealer. 

*^A  finished  universe  is  reached 
only  by  progressive  work ;  and 
a  perfect  Church  is  built  up  in 
the  same  way.  The  Christianity 
of  Christ  is  large  enough  to  en- 
large with  the  growth  of  men. 
The   vision  of  the   Father   shall 


I04  THE   GREATER    GOSPEL 

yet  be  seen  in  fuller   manifesta- 
tions of  the  Christ. 

"  Brethren,  I  appeal  from  the 
kingdom  of  God  in  the  personal 
life  of  a  Christian  man  to  the 
kingdom  of  God  in  its  widest 
sovereignty.  It  is  difficult  to 
obtain  witnesses  upon  this  point, 
but  there  are  men  who  do  not 
need  to  speak ;  men  of  faith, 
whose  faith  is  not  dead,  whose 
faith  lives  in  the  righteousness 
of  their  spirit  and  their  cha- 
racter. There  are  men  who  by 
their  faith  have  realized  fellow- 
ship with  God  as  distinct  and 
free  as  that  of  a  man  with  his 


CROWN  105 

friend,  who  by  their  faith  have 
reached  near  enough  to  heaven 
to  know  that  its  spiritual  citi- 
zenship may  be  honoured  in 
the  workshop  of  a  carpenter, 
or  under  the  signboard  of  an 
earthly  trade.  There  are  men 
pure  in  heart, — loyal  in  their 
love  to  God  and  man,  —  in 
whom  the  Divine  expectation  is 
centred,  and  to  whom  are  en- 
trusted the  privileges  and  re- 
sponsibilities of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven.  They  may  be  few, 
fewer  perhaps  than  we  are 
willing  to  admit ;  yet  withal, 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  has  put 


io6  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

them  in  evidence  concerning  the 
ultimate  triumphs  of  His  work. 

"  Another  question  is  forced 
into  this  inquiry:  Is  Christ 
disappointed?  Does  He  now 
grieve  over  the  failure  of  His 
work  as  He  wept  over  Jeru- 
salem ?  We  reply  deliberately  : 
Chrisfs  work  never  has  failed ! 
The  prayer  with  which  He  ac- 
cepted the  Cross  did  not  breathe 
a  note  of  anything  lost,  or  of 
anything  undone. 

*' Conditions  to  which  Christ's 
work  have  been  entrusted  have 
not  responded  to  His  design  and 
to    His    call;    and    where    these 


CROWN  107 

conditions  have  persisted  in 
working  on  man's  idea  for  him- 
self instead  of  on  God's  idea 
for  man,  the  conditions — as  a 
means  of  progress  to  Christ's 
work — have  failed,  but  Christ's 
work  has  not  failed.  Christ's 
tears  over  Jerusalem  were  not 
shed  because  His  work  had 
proved  insufficient  to  the  city's 
needs,  but  because  the  city  had 
not  recognised  the  things  which 
belonged  unto  its  peace. 

*'  It  is  written  of  the  Christ : 
'  He  shall   see  of  the   travail   of 

His     soul,    and     '        What 

follows  ? 


io8  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

"Bigotry  and  intolerance  in 
the  Churches  clamour  for  pre- 
eminence. Suspicion  and  slander 
damn  many  a  good  work,  be- 
cause the  doers  of  it  have  found 
in  Christ's  name  larger  sanctions 
than  in  sectarian  dogma.  Bitter- 
ness is  making  men's  hearts  to 
ache,  and  branding  the  Master's 
servants  with  false  names  and 
false  motives.  Has  then  the 
prophecy  fallen  short  of  its 
glorious  consummation  ?  Nay  ; 
'  He  shall  see  of  the  travail  of 
His  soul,  and  shall  be  satisfied.' 

''  Whoever  may  explain  the 
paradox,  the  loves  of  Christ  are 


CROWN  109 

so  mixed  up  with  the  hates  of 
men,  that  it  is  not  difficult  to 
forecast  which  shall  triumph. 
The  Gospel  and  The  Greater 
Gospel — which  are  really  one- 
are  so  occupying  the  universe  ot 
mind,  that  uncharitableness  is 
constrained  to  beg  at  doors 
where  it  would  not  have  con- 
tributed a  crust. 

"  When  every  admission  is 
made  which  unbelief  can  demand, 
and  every  inconsistency  stands 
impeached  at  the  tribunal  of 
righteousness,  there  still  remains 
the  fact,  that  the  truest  bonds  ot 
human    brotherhood,   the   noblest 


no  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

deeds  of  human  character,  and 
the  purest  aspirations  of  human 
lives,  are  derived,  consciously  or 
unconsciously,  from  the  influence 
of  the  Christ. 

"  The  Greater  Gospel  —  too 
s^reat  for  utterance  but  by  '  the 
mouth  of  the  Lord,'  too  great  to 
be  condensed  into  a  canon — is 
affecting  human  thought,  and 
human  love,  and  human  will. 
It  is  an  authority  in  our  laws 
and  sciences  and  philosophies. 
It  holds  the  scales  of  commerce, 
and  is  the  guardian  of  our  social 
economies.  It  is  the  sole  ground 
of  arbitration  for  the  redress  ol' 


CROWN  III 

wrongs ;  and  hereafter  it  shall 
breathe  in  every  creed,  give 
fragrance  to  every  cross,  and 
never-fading  glory  to  every 
crown." 

The  minister  closed  the  ser- 
vice with  the  consecration 
prayer, — 

"For  Zion's  sake  will  I  not 
hold  my  peace,  and  for  Jeru- 
salem's sake  I  will  not  rest  until 
her  righteousness  go  forth  as 
brightness,  and  her  salvation  as 
a  lamp  that  burneth." 


Chapter  IV 

CONQUEST 

A  I  AHE  city  church  was 
crowded  to  its  utmost 
capacity.  The  questions  which 
had  been  so  emphatically  asked 
and  answered  had  made  a  pro- 
found impression  upon  the 
people.  Even  well  -  seasoned 
church-goers,  whose  ideas  of 
worship  had  never  advanced 
beyond  the  limits  of  a  prescribed 
form,  and  who  had  felt   inclined 

112 


CONQUEST  113 

to  resent  the  pastor's  appeals  as 
an  innovation,  were  beginning 
to  think  that  the  gospel  was  a 
greater  theme  than  they  had 
supposed.  They  were  soundly 
orthodox.  They  held  their  belief 
in  Scripture  doctrines  with  a 
strictness  which  was  above  sus- 
picion. They  renewed  their 
confession  of  faith — verbally  or 
mentally  —  every  Lord's  Day. 
They  were,  as  they  believed, 
guardians  of  the  faith,  defenders 
of  the  faith  —  possibly  —  exem- 
plars of  the  faith.  Their  belief 
in  the  gospel  as  a  book  was  per- 
fect ;  but  now  that  the  book  was 
8 


114  THE  GREATER   GOSPEL 

bursting  into  life,  and  vitality 
began  to  flow  along  all  the  veins 
of  truth,  they  marvelled  that 
while  the  gospel  was  so  great, 
their  faith  had  been  so  small. 
The  gospel  had  grown  from 
being  a  historical  record  to 
being  "  The  power  of  God  unto 
salvation  to  every  one  that  be- 
lieveth."  To  live  the  gospel  was 
a  ten  times  bigger  thing  than  to 
believe  it.  The  gospel  inter- 
preted by  profession  was  im- 
measurably exceeded  by  the 
gospel  interpreted  by  life. 
When  looked  at  in  the  pew  it 
was  one  thing,  but  when  taken 


CONQUEST  115 

home  and  mixed  like  leaven  in 
the  lump,  it  was  everything. 

To  read  Christ's  words,  and 
to  believe  them,  when  He  said, 
"  Son,  thy  sins  are  forgiven," 
was  to  these  church-goers  a 
gospel  of  pardon ;  but  when  they 
realized  what  pardon  was  in  the 
awakened  conscience,  and  in  the 
divine  cost  of  God's  longsuffer- 
ing  love,  it  became  a  gospel 
beyond  expression.  When  the 
story  of  the  prodigal's  return 
was  retold  in  the  joys  and 
sorrows  of  their  own  families, 
the  parable  proved  a  heritage. 
The    pardon    of   promise  was  a 


ii6  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

gospel,  but  the  penitence  in 
which  their  own  tears  had 
mingled,  and  the  reconciliation 
in  which  their  own  hearts  had 
rejoiced,  was  a  gospel  greater  by 
a  hundred-fold. 

With  a  measure  of  grateful 
emotion  these  professors  had 
found  in  Christ's  teaching  a 
gospel  of  consolation :  "  Blessed 
are  they  that  mourn,  for  they 
shall  be  comforted."  But  when 
they  knew  how  trial  and  pain, 
which  operate  in  the  refining  of 
character,  were  first  tempered 
in  the  sympathies  of  Christ  be- 
fore   allowed    to    touch    human 


CONQUEST  117 

experience,  their  consolation 
abounded,  even  in  extremes  of 
suffering  out  of  which  anguish 
wrung  the  cry,  "  Behold,  and  see 
if  there  be  any  sorrow  like  unto 
my  sorrow." 

The  stricken  and  trembling 
hands  were  taught  by  the 
Greater  Gospel  to  gather  up 
the  things  which  had  been  rent 
and  torn,  and  to  place  them  in 
a  new  setting  more  beautiful 
than  before.  Aye,  and  the 
troubled  heart  was  enabled  to 
recover  the  harmony  of  its  pulse. 
Life  shone  with  purer  lustre, 
character    matured    in    stronger 


ii8  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

individuality,  temper  rested  in 
settled  convictions,  which  held 
against  all  comers, — the  good- 
ness of  God.  The  Greater  Gos- 
pel became  a  meeting-ground 
between  those  "  in  great  tribu- 
lation" and  those  ''arrayed  in 
white  robes  before  the  throne" — 
a  *'  Holy  of  holies  "  in  which  the 
Divine  light  was  seen  and  the 
Divine  voice  heard — a  mansion 
of  the  Father's  house,  in  which 
the  risen  Christ  renewed  the 
bond,  "  My  Father  and  your 
Father,  and  My  God  and  your 
God." 

In  like  manner,  these  church- 


CONQUEST  119 

goers  had  read  our  Lord's  last 
proclamation  as  a  gospel  of  con- 
quest :  '*  Be  of  good  cheer ;  I 
have  overcome  the  world."  But 
when  they  saw  that  every  true 
Christian  was  invested  with 
kindred  royalty,  and  that  the 
promise  of  a  kingdom  was  as 
real  in  the  life  of  one  Christ- 
like man  as  in  the  conversion 
of  a  nation  or  a  world,  the 
gospel  of  conquest  assumed  pro- 
portions in  which  the  possibilities 
were  infinite.  It  was  no  longer 
a  question  of  supplanting  system 
by  system,  or  of  winning  an 
empire  by  superior  power.     The 


I20  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

question  was  simplified  into  mak- 
ing one  heart  pure,  one  will 
true,  one  character  righteous; 
and  when  these  professors  were 
brought  face  to  face  with  a 
man  in  whom  the  grace  of 
Christ  was  thus  fulfilled,  they 
were  not  only  constrained  to 
admit  the  ultimate  triumphs  of 
Christ's  work,  but  were  made 
to  understand  what  must  be 
their  personal  part  in   it. 

It  was  under  the  influence  of 
these  stimulating  thoughts  that 
they  again  gathered  in  the 
church,  and  listened  with  in- 
terest as  the   minister  presented 


CONQUEST  121 

a  further  appeal  to  his  congre- 
gation in  the  cumulative  power 
of  the  inquiries  which  had  pre- 
ceded it. 

"  Do  we  find  in  the  considera- 
tions which  have  occupied  the 
attention  of  this  Church  a  com- 
mon foundation  of  service  and  of 
hope?'' 

A  man  of  reverend  aspect, 
and  in  the  garb  of  an  ecclesias- 
tic, immediately  rose  to  answer 
the  appeal.  It  was  easy  to  see 
that  ascetic  habits  had  produced 
effects  upon  his  person.  His  face 
was  carven  in  hard  lines,  as  if 
a     graving     tool     had    wrouglit 


122  THE   GREATER   i^OSPEL 

upon  it.  His  countenance  was 
inscrutable.  Mystery  looked 
through  his  eyes.  Silence  sealed 
his  thin  lips.  No  one  in  the 
assembly  could  divine  what  that 
man  was  going  to  say.  Would 
he  speak  at  all  ?  The  query  was 
soon  settled,  and  before  a  dozen 
sentences  had  been  uttered  the 
assembly  was  spell-bound.  His 
first  words  came  in  husky  tones, 
as  if  the  speaker  were  grinding 
them  out  of  a  rusty  mill ;  but 
they  were  so  cleverly  marshalled 
upon  his  tongue  that  not  a  word 
was  allowed  to  slip  until  it  con- 
tained all  the  sense  he  meant  it 


CONQUEST  123 

to  convey.  Every  sentence  was 
cut  with  deliberative  strength, — 
''  Sir,  a  month  ago  I  was 
asked  to  visit  a  dying  man.  I 
knew  the  man.  He  had  lived 
for  years  hard  by  my  church, 
but  had  never  entered  it.  He 
was  intelligent.  His  character 
was  irreproachable.  His  charity 
was  the  outflow  of  sympathy 
and  self-denial.  His  influence 
was  active  in  every  good  cause. 
His  example  was  a  healthy 
stimulus  among  his  neighbours. 
In  his  business  he  was  the  soul 
of  integrity.  He  was  worthy  to 
be  loved,  and  he  was  loved ;  but 


124  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

I  did  not  love  him.  The  Church 
which  I  represented  pronounced 
him  to  be  a  heretic.  The  taint 
of  schism  was  upon  him.  He 
had  forfeited  every  privilege  by 
his  own  contumacy,  and  the 
Church  cursed  him,  under  a  ban 
of  excommunication,  in  body  and 
soul.  Purity,  charity,  integrity, 
weighed  only  as  a  feather  in 
the  balances  against  his  dis- 
obedience to  the  Church's  claim. 
That  was  an  unpardonable  sin, 
and  God  and  the  ministers  of 
God  set  their  inflexible  frown 
upon  it. 

"The  Church  believed   in  one 


CONQUEST  125 

fold,  and  she  believed  that  fold 
to  be  herself.  To  those  outside 
the  true  pale  she  had  nothing 
to  offer — no  pardon,  no  consola- 
tion, no  crown,  no  conquest — 
shall  I  say  it  ? — 710  hope.  The 
heart  of  the  Church  was  domi- 
nated by  her  intellect.  Intellect 
was  her  dictator.  Tender  sym- 
pathies were  strangled  in  the 
birth.  The  Church  was  inflated 
with  a  sense  of  her  supremacy. 
Even  the  Cross  was  secondary 
to  her  crook.  That  was  the 
school  in  which  I  was  taught 
and  in  w^hich  I  taught.  My 
growth  was  entirely  on  the   in- 


126  THE    GREATER   GOSPEL 

tellectual  side,  and  because  my 
heart  did  not  grow  with  it  I 
was  in  danger  of  a  subtle 
atrophy,  which  must  have  sapped 
and  drained  my  moral  manhood. 
I  was  bound  by  one  great  mental 
idea  of  Church  authority.  Any 
attempt  of  my  heart  to  pass  that 
point  was  met  by  pains  and 
penalties  for  its  unhallowed  tres- 
pass. The  Church  became  the 
keeper  of  my  conscience,  and 
in  the  transfer  of  my  responsi- 
bility to  her  I  found  an  imagi- 
nary rest. 

"The    summons    to    visit    my 
sick    neighbour    found    me    tho- 


CONQUEST  127 

roughly  clad  in  this  investiture 
of  sanctity  and  superiority.  I 
laid  the  request  at  once  before 
my  intellect.  I  had  sufficient 
conscience  left  to  respond  to  it; 
and  that  nothing  superfluous 
might  come  between  the  sufferer 
and  me,  I  did  my  best  to  clear 
the  ground  of  all  preliminary 
questions, — 

" '  What  can  I,  as  a  priest  01 
God,  do  for  this  man  ?  How  may 
I  lawfully  help  him  in  his  ex- 
tremity ? ' 

"  The  answer  came  in  the 
deep  conviction  that  if  I  could 
induce  him  to  forswear  his  false 


128  THE   GREATER    GOSPEL 

fellowship  with  aliens  I  should 
be  doing  God  service.  The  duty 
I  felt  called  to  render  was  one 
in  which  my  heart  had  nothing 
to  do.  It  could  only  accompany 
me  as  a  passive  witness  of  the 
interview.  Oh,  God !  what  was 
it  that  woke  up  my  spirit  ?  What 
was  it  that  knocked  off  my  fet- 
ters, and  emancipated  my  soul 
from  bondage?  What  was  it 
that  cast  my  lifelong  ideals  into 
confusion,  and  left  me  speechless 
in  the  sick  man's  presence  ?  My 
heart  contended  against  my  in- 
tellect that  1  was  on  holy 
ground.     My  starved  and  cowed 


CONQUEST  129 

affections  inhaled  the  atmosphere 
of  heaven,  and  swelled  with  a 
new-found  liberty.  No  heresy 
could  unveil  a  face  like  that. 
No  hypocrisy  could  hide  behind 
it.  There  was  the  light  of  the 
countenance  of  God.  There  was 
the  visible  expression  of  God's 
adopting  love.  There  was  vic- 
tory. There  was  peace.  My  in- 
tellect saw  it.  My  heart  saw  it. 
My  whole  spiritual  being  saw  it. 
*'  This  man — to  me — was  an 
outcast ;  to  be  saved  only  '  so 
as  by  fire,'  and  that  by  the 
special      interposition      of      the 

Church.    I  had  approached  him 
9 


I30  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

as  an  act  of  condescension,  to 
perform  a  last  sad  rite ;  but  the 
ministering  spirits  from  the 
Divine  presence  were  there  be- 
fore me.  I  had  come  to  see 
that  sin  and  death  and  the  devil 
were  vanquished,  and  that  the 
firstfruits  of  the  kingdom  were 
already  in  the  dying  man's  pos- 
session. 

'*  The  tumult  within  me  waxed 
hot  and  fierce,  but  in  the  midst 
of  it  I  heard  a  '  still  small  voice ' 
saying  unto  me,  '  Be  still,  and 
know  that  I  am  God.'  I  gathered 
my  scattered  powers,  and  ad- 
dressed the  sufferer, — 


CONQUEST  131 

"  *  Dost  thou  desire  to  die  on 
the  bosom  of  the  Church  ? ' 

"  '  Sir  ! '  he  responded,  '  I  am 
dying  on  the  bosom  of  Christ. 
Is  it  death  or  is  it  greater  Hfe? 
Is  it  dying  to  pass  the  valley  of 
shadows  and  to  reach  the  hills 
of  light  ?  My  Redeemer  says : 
'  He  that  believeth  on  Me, 
though  he  die,  yet  shall  he 
live:  and  whosoever  liveth  and 
believeth  on  Me  shall  never 
die;'  and  I  do,  with  my  whole 
heart,  believe  on   Him.' 

"  He  told  me  how  he  had  fled 
for  refuge  to  lay  hold  of  the 
hope    set    before    him,    how    he 


132  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

had  proved  that  hope  to  be  an 
anchor  of  the  soul  sure  and 
steadfast,  and  how  it  already- 
entered  within  the  veil  and 
enabled  him  to  obtain  fellowship 
with  his  High  Priest  and  Fore- 
runner, even  Jesus. 

"'Who  was  I  that  I  could 
withstand  God?'  I  dare  not 
tear  that  robe  of  light  away 
and  substitute  for  it  the  sack- 
cloth of  my  formularies.  I  dare 
not  snatch  from  his  lips  the 
bread  of  life,  and  exchange  it 
for  the  husks  on  which  my 
soul  was  famishing.  I  dare 
not     lift    him    from    the    bosom 


CONQUEST  133 

of  his  Saviour  and  lay  him  on 
the  hard  pillow  of  the  Church. 
I  dare  not  darken  the  vision  of 
his  faith  with  the  beams  which 
were  in  mine  own  eye.  I  dare 
not  charge  him  to  cast  away 
the  Greater  Gospel,  and  to  take 
mine  which  was  too  small  to 
give  him  a  blessing.  I  knelt 
by  his  bedside,  and  said :  '  My 
Christian  brother,  I  desire  a 
benediction  from  thee ! '  The 
prevalence  of  his  prayer  is  upon 
me  now.  There  my  bonds  were 
loosed.  There  I  renewed  my 
vows.  There  I  was  ordained 
to    minister.     There    I    was   en- 


134  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

dued  with  power.  And  there  I 
realized  what  you  have  asked 
for — a  common  foundation  of 
service  and  of  hope. 

"  Sir !  I  have  watched  the 
battle  of  the  creeds,  and  I  have 
lived  to  see  that  the  conquering 
power  is  love.  I  have  proved 
how  the  most  advanced  studies 
of  the  Church  are  crossed  with 
the  primitive  lesson :  '  He  that 
loveth  not  his  brother  whom 
he  hath  seen,  how  can  he  love 
God  whom  he  hath  not  seen  ? ' 
I  have  heard  that  query  pressed 
by  unearthly  voices,  until  I  did 
not  dare  to    look    at    the    Cross 


CONQUEST  135 

on  the  one  hand  or  at  the 
judgment  throne  on  the  other. 
I  stood  between  great  verities, 
and  my  unloved  brother  stood 
there  with  me.  The  Cross 
asked:  'How  can  he  love  God 
whom  he  hath  not  seen  ? ' 
The  Throne  repeated  the  inquiry, 
and  I,  though  willing  to  justify 
myself,  was  dumb.  In  my  ex- 
tremity I  looked  up  to  God,  but 
clouds  and  darkness  were  round 
about  Him.  I  meditated  upon 
His  commandments,  put  more 
stringent  restraints  upon  my 
will,  ordered  my  life  by  strictest 
rules  ot  sanctity,  and   exercised 


136  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

myself  to  win  His  pleasure; 
but  the  query  still  remained 
unanswered  :  '  How  can  he  love 
God  whom  he  hath  not  seen?' 

"  I  examined  myself,  confessed 
my  secret  sins,  received  abso- 
lution, and  with  it  the  assur- 
ance of  the  Church  that  I  was 
innocent ;  yet  withal  my  con- 
science told  me  I  was  guilty, 
and  wath  that  sense  of  guilt 
upon  my  spirit  I  fell  upon  my 
brother's  neck  and  gave  to  him 
my  love,  while  he  gave  his 
benediction  to  me.  In  that 
moment  the  clouds  lifted.  I 
saw   that    God    was   light,    and 


CONQUEST  137 

that  in  Him  was  no  darkness 
at  all :  '  How  can  he  love  God 
whom  he  hath  not  seen?'  My 
exultant  soul  exclaimed :  '  I  can, 
my  God,  I  can !  Because  Thou 
art  my  witness  that  I  love 
my  brother  whom  I  have  seen.'  " 
After  an  interval  spent  in 
silent  prayer,  the  minister  in 
charge  addressed  the  congrega- 
tion. It  was  evident  to  all 
that  his  heart  was  full.  The 
pent-up  feeling  threatened  to 
overwhelm  his  self-possession. 
By  a  resolute  effort  of  the  will, 
and  in  the  consciousness  of 
strength    v^hich    is    given   to    a 


138  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

man  when  called  by  a  great 
crisis  to  speak  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  God,  he  requested 
the  people  to  join  with  him  in 
thanksgiving  for  the  Greater 
Gospel,  which  had  been  so 
signally  declared  in  their  midst. 
He  spoke  with  calm  force, 
but  as  he  continued,  the  deepen- 
ing flow  of  sympathy  between 
speaker  and  hearers  bore  them 
on,  on  until  the  awe  of  the  Divine 
presence  revealed  how  near 
they  were  to  God.  Was  it  the 
ambassador  who  w^as  still  speak- 
ing, or  was  it  the  King?  The 
words  were  the  words  of  a  man, 


CONQUEST  139 

but  the  dispensation  of  the 
message  was  in  superhuman 
power, — 

"  Our  brother  has  spoken  as 
a  minister  of  God,  and  with  a 
solemn  reverence  for  his  holy 
office,  which  commands  our 
respect  and  to  which  our  hearts 
respond.  He  has  led  us  step 
by  step  along  the  hard  path  by 
which  he  reached  the  common 
foundation  of  service  and  of 
hope.  We  have  looked  into  the 
faces  of  his  enemies.  We  have 
been  engaged  in  a  hand-to- 
hand  fight  with  foes  whose 
demands  were  utterly  unreason- 


140  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

able;  our  white  flag  has  been 
fired  at,  our  proposals  to  submit 
the  merits  of  the  strife  to  arbi- 
tration by  Divine  appointment 
have  been  despised.  We  have 
advanced  in  front  of  citadels 
which  were  said  to  be  impreg- 
nable. But  we  are  reaching 
clearer  ground,  and  may  take 
a  little  breathing-time  to  ask, — 

" '  Where  has  our  brother 
found  the  centre  of  Christian 
service?  Where  has  he  found 
the  brotherhood  in  which  Chris- 
tian unity  is  not  a  phrase,  but 
an  essential  reality  ?  ' 

''  Let  every  man   answer  that 


CONQUEST  141 

question  for  himself.  Let  every 
claimant  who  demands  the  right 
of  appeal  at  the  bar  of  a  man's 
conscience  be  given  a  fair  hear- 
ing. It  will  be  found  that 
many  of  these  have  no  better 
plea  than  false  pretences.  The 
cross-examination  of  witnesses 
and  the  sifting  of  their  evidence 
will  put  many  cases  out  ot 
court ;  but,  in  giving  judgment, 
the  Master  will  carry  our  con- 
science with  Him, — 

''  *  The  words  that  I  have 
spoken  unto  you  are  spirit  and 
are  life.' 

"That    is    the    Master's    ulti- 


142  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

matum  in  all  controversies.  He 
spake  it  when  He  said, — 

" '  One  is  your  Teacher,  and 
all  ye  are  brethren.  One  is 
your  Master,  even  the  Christ.' 

"  He  spake  it  in  His  reply  to 
the  disciples  when  they  asked, 
'  Who,  then,  is  greatest  in  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  ? '  In  that 
moment  His  eye  fell  upon  a 
little  child;  and,  with  a  smile 
which  won  the  heart  of  the 
little  one.  He  set  him  in  the 
midst.  It  was  probably  while 
the  child's  hand  was  resting  in 
His  own  gentle  clasp  that  He 
said :    '  Whosoever  shall   humble 


CONQUEST  143 

himself  as  this  little  child,  the 
same  is  the  greatest  in  the 
kingdom  of  heaven.' 

"  He  spake  it  to  the  ambitious 
mother,  who  came  saying, — 

''  *  Command  that  these  my 
two  sons  may  sit  one  on  Thy 
right  hand  and  one  on  Thy  left 
hand  in  Thy  kingdom.'  '  Ye 
know  not  what  ye  ask,'  He 
answered.  '  To  sit  on  My  right 
hand  and  on  My  left  hand  is 
not  Mine  to  give,  but  it  is  for 
them  for  whom  it  hath  been 
prepared  of  My  Father.' 

"He  spake  it  when  He  knelt 
to  wash  His  disciples'  feet, — 


144  THE    GREATER   GOSPEL 

*"  Ye  call  me  Master  and 
Lord,  and  ye  say,  Well,  for  so 
I  am.  If  I,  then,  the  Lord  and 
the  Master,  have  washed  your 
feet,  ye  also  ought  to  wash  one 
another's  feet.  For  I  have 
given  you  an  example,  that  ye 
also  should  do  as  I  have  done 
to  you.' 

"He  spake  it  yet  again  as  a 
new  and  last  commandment 
when  He  said, — 

" '  By  this  shall  all  men  know 
that  ye  are  My  disciples,  if  ye 
have  love  one  to  another.' 

"  Is  it  conceivable  that  a 
foundation    thus  supplied   is  in- 


CONQUEST  145 

tended  for  a  narrow  superstruc- 
ture ?  Are  these  broad  and 
massive  lines  meant  to  mark 
the  borders  of  a  community  or 
a  class?  Have  we  not  here  a 
Divine  warrant  for  the  famous 
saying :  *  Charity  is  above  ru- 
brics '  ?  What  is  this  but 
Christ's  words — '  I  desire  mercy 
and  not  sacrifice ' — cast  in  a 
modern  mould  ? 

"  The  higher  law  must  ex- 
pound the  lower.  The  Greater 
Gospel  must  reveal  the  lesser. 
The  soul  must  interpret  what 
the  eye  sees  and  the  ear  hears. 
Material    sense    must  submit  to 

10 


146  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

spiritual.  We  must  not  allow 
the  riven  veil  to  shut  us  out 
from  the  new  and  living  way. 
We  must  not  hesitate  in  our 
endeavours  to  extract  the  sweet 
essences  of  truth  from  a  fear 
that  we  may  press  too  hard 
upon  the  substance  which  con- 
tains them.  If  the  bark  be 
conductor  of  the  sap,  it  surely 
cannot  be  superior  to  it.  The 
bud  is  beautiful,  but  the  root  is 
vital.  To  cherish  the  bud  and 
neglect  the  root  would  bring 
poor  results.  How  often  have 
our  blooms  withered  because  we 
had  not    suspected  a    pot-bound 


CONQUEST  147 

root.  The  plant  wanted  more 
room,  more  earth,  more  air, 
more  freedom. 

*'  And  there  are  pot-bound 
Churches  suffering  in  a  similar 
way  Their  fruits  and  flowers 
do  not  reach  maturity  because 
of  unnatural  restraints,  or  be- 
cause they  have  stiffened  into 
an  inert  condition.  Even  in  the 
garden  of  the  Lord  we  are 
getting  jealous  lest  the  vine 
should  run  over  the  wall  and 
some  poor  fainting  wayfarer 
should  pluck  a  bunch  of  grapes 
without  permission. 

"  If  the  principle  of  unity  be 


148  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

sought  in  forms,  it  will  never 
be  found.  It  lies  deeper  than 
any  form  can  reach.  This  form 
may  present  one  side  of  the 
truth;  that  form  may  present 
another;  but  scoffers  will  still 
say,  '  Why  don't  you  pull  down 
your  partition  walls  and  let  in 
more  light  ?  '  If  we  could  agree 
to  do  that,  we  should  probably 
bring  into  view  more  breadth 
and  beauty  than  by  a  century 
of  talk.  But  even  partition 
walls  do  not  necessarily  spoil 
the  house.  The  grievance  lies 
in  the  locked  doors  and  in  the 
want  of  a  master-key. 


CONQUEST  149 

"  Unity  is  never  born  of 
forms.  Contracting  parties  have 
avowed  under  most  stringent 
covenants — for  better,  for  worse, 
for  richer,  for  poorer,  till  death 
do  us  part — to  maintain  an  in- 
violable unity;  but  where  love 
has  not  come  in  to  give  its 
sanction  to  these  covenants,  the 
form  has  legalized  a  union 
without  unity.  The  marriage 
bond  in  family  life  and  the 
marriage  bond  in  Church  life 
are  alike  in  this — that  their 
approach  to  unity  is  in  the 
invocation  of  love.  When  shall 
we    be    prepared    to    stake    the 


150  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

balance  of  power  in  the  prayer: 
*  Lord,  to  whom  shall  we  go  ? 
Thou  hast  the  words  of  eternal 
life '  ? 

"A  foundation  merely  senti- 
mental would  fail  to  provide 
common  ground  for  Christian 
service  and  Christian  hope  as 
inevitably  as  a  foundation  merely 
intellectual.  The  love  of  which 
we  speak  is  that  which  burns 
with  Divine  passion,  and  which 
seeks  to  realize  the  truth,  not 
only  as  Christ  taught  it,  but  as 
He  would  teach  it  if  He  were 
preaching  in  the  churches  to- 
day.    In  that  teaching  there  are 


CONQUEST  151 

undoubtedly  germs  which  cannot 
be  exhausted  by  the  fixed  pro- 
duce of  a  generation  or  an  age. 
And  the  faith  which  would  not 
starve  and  die  must  be  so  far 
in  fellowship  with  love  as  to  be 
willing  to  patiently  consider  the 
anxieties  of  religious  thought, 
and  to  sympathise  with  inquir- 
ing men,  who  are  longing  for 
something  more  than  the  cold 
comfort  of  a  name. 

"  It  may  be  that  we  are  subject 
to  a  strain  of  expectation  God- 
ward  when  we  might  have  our 
expectations  more  quickly  re- 
alized in  our  brother's  blessmg. 


152  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

The  missing  link  in  the  Churches 
is  not  between  God  and  man, 
but  between  brother  and  brother. 
*'  Is  it  possible  for  the  mistakes 
ot  love  to  become  embarrassing 
to  the  Church?  Is  it  possible 
for  love  to  so  fill  its  eye  with 
some  coveted  object  as  to  stifle 
the  instincts  of  maternity?  Is 
it  possible  for  love  to  take  the 
knife,  and  stretch  forth  its  hand 
to  slay  its  son,  deaf  to  the 
voice  of  God,  which  is  calling 
loud  and  clear :  '  Lay  not  thine 
hand  upon  the  lad'?  Yea,  love 
may  forget.  Yea,  love  may  not 
have  ears  to  hear. 


CONQUEST  153 

"  Our  human  love  needs  to 
follow  the  Christ,  to  go  with 
Him  to  the  Temple,  to  sit  at  His 
feet,  to  hear  how  He  speaks  to 
His  enemies  and  friends,  to  con- 
sider the  counsels  He  gives  to 
the  Church  and  the  world. 
Then  it  may  go  with  Him  to 
Calvary  and  wait  by  His  cross, 
until  it  understand  how  true 
love  takes  upon  itself  the  chas- 
tisements and  stripes  of  the 
unworthy.  How  it  submits  to 
be  wounded  and  bruised  in  the 
stead  of  the  transgressor,  before 
it  says :  '  I  know  ye  not  whence 
ye  are ! ' 


154  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

"It  is  a  significant  fact,  and 
surely  contains  some  sacred 
meaning  to  the  Church,  that 
the  one  of  the  twelve  who  drew 
the  spirit  of  his  ministry  most 
directly  from  his  Master's  heart 
was  the  disciple  ^  whom  Jesus 
loved.'  It  was  not  a  distinction 
for  his  intelligence,  or  his  elo- 
quence, or  his  zeal — he  had  been 
rebuked  for  that ;  it  was  a  dis- 
tinction for  love,  and  because  he 
loved  with  all  his  heart  he  was 
privileged  to  'recline  on  Jesus' 
bosom,'  and  to  see  more  of 
heaven  before  he  entered  it  than 
any  other  man.     It  was  in  that 


CONQUEST  155 

near  communion  with  Jesus  that 
his  heart  grew  large  enough 
to  write,  and  that  he  was  en- 
trusted to  write, — 

'*  *  God  is  love ;  and  he  that 
abideth  in  love  abideth  in  God, 
and  God  abideth  in  him.' 

"  Have  we  ever  given  any- 
serious  thought  to  the  inquiry: 
How  is  it  that  Deity  allowed 
the  revelation  to  go  forth  that 
'  God  is  love '  ?  God  is  holy. 
God  is  just.  God  is  '  of  purer 
eyes  than  to  behold  evil.' 
'  Yea,  a  God  that  hath  indig- 
nation every  day.'  Yet  withal, 
Jehovah     has     never    expressed 


156  THE   GREATER   GOSPEL 

any  concern  lest  men  should 
unduly  magnify  His  love.  The 
righteousness  of  His  character 
has  never  made  His  love  in- 
operative. The  perfections  of 
His  being  have  never  —  even 
partially  —  eclipsed  His  love. 
The  glory  of  His  throne  has 
never  outshone  the  vision  of 
love.  Even  Sinai's  lightnings 
played  upon  the  line,  '  Showing 
mercy  unto  thousands  of  them 
that  love  Me  and  keep  My 
commandments.'  Even  from  the 
great  white  throne  of  judgment 
comes  the  assurance  that  God 
Himself  '  shall  wipe  away  every 


CONQUEST  157 

tear '    from    His    people's    eyes. 

"  The  love  of  God  draws  into 
itself  all  attributes  of  sover- 
eignty. Holiness  and  equity 
have  been  magnified  in  His 
administration  because  of  the 
supremacy  of  love.  Whatever 
His  goodness  has  required,  He 
has  never  been  afraid  that  any 
false  advantage  could  be  claimed 
by  men  in  serving  and  adoring 
Him  as  Love. 

''  Love  has  ruled  all  His  rela- 
tions with  men,  and  when  dis- 
cipline and  rebuke  have  been 
necessary,  the  administrator  has 
been  Love. 


158  THE  GREATER   GOSPEL 

''When  the  Church  so  nearly 
approximates  to  the  Divine  na- 
ture,  that   it  may  be  written — 

The   Church  is  love, 

in  that  day  the  last  argument 
will  be  taken  out  of  the  mouth 
of  infidelity.  Then  will  the 
union  of  the  Church  be  strength. 
Then  will  the  spots  be  removed 
from  its  leasts  of  charity.  Then 
will  the  greater  service  and 
greater  hope  of  the  Church  cele- 
brate its  victory,  saying :  '  Halle- 
lujah :  for  the  Lord  our  God, 
the  Almighty,  reigneth.  Let 
us     rejoice     and     be     exceeding 


CONQUEST  159 

glad,  and  let  us  give  the  glory 
unto  Him.'  " 

The  minister  closed  the  ser- 
vice with  the  prayer, — 

"  That  they  may  all  be  one ; 
even  as  Thou,  Father,  art  in 
Me,  and  I  in  Thee,  that  they 
also  may  be  in  us:  that  the 
world  may  believe  that  Thou 
didst  send  Me.     Amen." 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Libra 


1    1012  01148  8923 


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